Mobian Cop, Bad Cop
by Yorobot
Summary: Set 13 years after the games. For detective Shadow, solving his latest case is piece of cake as compared to getting along with his new partner... Contains English and French swearing, sexual references, and violence. Have a careful read... R&R!
1. Prologue

Mobian Cop Bad Cop

Important notice: The movie this fanfiction is based on is half-French, half-English. As such, what should be in French will be italicized, while everything else will be in English. This story happens thirteen years after the games` continuity. _As an example, this sentence is in French._

Full synopsis: For Shadow, detective since ten years, solving his latest case is piece of cake compared to getting along with his new partner, a French, knuckleheaded coyote named Alexis. However, they will have to team up to find the murderer of hulo-related people, who acts on the English side as well as the French one.

* * *

Prologue

BRZZZT "_next call please_…" BRZZZT "_we are talking to Derek._" BRZZZT

A distant radio can be heard. The voice suddenly changed. "_Hey, Roy, how`s it doing?_"

"_Not bad, not bad_…" Roy answered.

"_Hey, what do you think about the rumor that Station Square`s Dashers will be sold to Soleanna?_" BRZZZT

"_Dashers to Soleanna? Wait, you`re wrong, that`s not the rumor at all, Der`._"

"_Well, my half-brother supposedly…_"

"_Half-brother? Half-brother? Cousin, sister-in-law, the cab driver, the bar`s owner… the uncle, the nephew… It`s got nothing to do with that,_" Roy said, losing his temper.

The radio sounded distant, yet someone, in the semi-darkness, could hear everything that was said. That someone knew exactly what Roy and Derek were talking about.

"_The real rumor, it`s that a team from Four-Lakes City is getting sold away. It might as well be a team from Station Square, it might be one from White Mountain, might be any city around Station Square, whatever…_"

The person in the dark was attached to the chair he was sitting on. No one knew exactly what was happening. Unless this masked character over there has an explanation… The masked person was slowly tattooing something on the victim`s arm while listening to the radio show.

"_I gotta admit…_" Roy said. BRZZZT

"_Well, since the strike…_" Derek began.

"_Which strike? Where`s the goddamn strike? Do you know where it went? It ended two years ago, the freaking strike!_" BRZZZT

The masked tattooist slowly continued his task. He dipped his tool in some dark-bluish ink and continued drawing on the attached man`s arm.

"_There`s no original Soleannian teams, all our teams get sent there…_" Derek began.

"_Who cares? Our sport is transforming. I can understand for the group of pretty girls wearing mini-skirts, the cheerleaders, at least it gives us guys something to look at, but do we have to give a damn about mascots?_"

The victim was asleep. The bugging noise made by the tattooing machine didn`t seem to wake him up.

"_Mascots are useless. They`re hairy, they`re big, and it`s hot as hell inside the big fat disguise. You might use it as winter clothing and you`d survive even in Mobius` Great North,_" Roy continued.

The tattoo pen buzzed while the masked tattooist continued his drawing. The buzzing almost hid the radio`s noise. What the two people on air say now is impossible to hear, or at least it is difficult to understand them. The masked guy said nothing; he may be listening to the radio show, or he might keep his mouth shut for suspense – or to avoid waking up his victim, who is a human around forty years old. The attached man coughed and started moving, so the tattooist stopped. The masked guy put the radio to Off as his victim slowly wakes.

"_What's happening?_" the attached man asked. Then he noticed his wrists are stuck to the chair`s armrests. "Why am I attached?"

The man was wearing a three-piece suit with a diagonally striped red, blue and white tie. The man finally opened his eyes, to see the tattooist, still wearing his mask. A single look is enough to see the tattooist is an anthropomorphic walrus. The walrus waves his hand in a "goodbye" fashion.

"_What am I doing here?_ _What did I do?_"

The masked man finally speaks.

"_That`s the problem, Mac…_" the tattooist began. "_You did nothing._"

Mac was scared. In his eyes, there was some kind of feeling that could not be described, a mix of confusion, terror and misunderstanding. The masked walrus finally retired his mask. Now only terror could be seen in Mac`s eyes. As the walrus finally places back his mask over his head, Mac tries talking.

"_I wanted to help you, y`know… you know it, don`t you?_" Mac begins. The masked walrus slightly pokes his victim`s right cheek. "_You should know it…_"

The walrus turns away and pulls a strange-looking stick from a case.

"_I wasn`t trying to drop you off… Detach me, we`ll arrange that."_

But the walrus has pulled out the stick. It is long, bears a team name on it and the end looks like a double hockey stick; however the two curved wooden ends are placed in a right angle.

"_Detach me!_" Mac begs.

The masked assailant waves the hulo stick in front of his own face, while Mac, unable of moving, is watching. Mac understands what is going to happen. The kidnapper walks slowly around his victim.

"_I can help you! You know, you`ve always been like a baby brother to me, my best friends, my p-_" Mac begins, but is cut off when the walrus puts his hand over Mac`s mouth. After a few seconds, he retires his hand. "_What the… where are you?_" Mac asks, unable of turning more his head.

The walrus is just behind him, near an old television.

"_Hush…the game`s about to begin._" And the walrus strikes the back of his victim`s head with the hulo stick. This kills Mac instantly.

Just then some noise is heard coming from the television. A hulo game had just begun, and over the large slippery field, two teams are about to start playing. The masked killer watches the game, holding his hulo stick in his right hand. From the television, we can hear: "_The referee has finally whistled, the two teams are about to begin. The goalkeepers are getting ready and the players rush to the balls…_"

* * *

Author`s notes: This is a rather short prologue, but trust me that the next chapters will be longer for sure. I just wanted to have a nice, scary prologue so that everyone understands the story won`t be a walk in a nature trail.


	2. Chapter 1

I own many characters in this story, however I do not own many others. I don`t own the franchise, which is just too bad. Oh well.

Note: Now there are two more things to remember. When something will be underlined, it is because it is impossible to translate. Believe me, I`ve tried my best. Usually it will be some French curse words. And when something will be **bolded**, the one speaking will have used a voice modulator. _**It also means sometimes he or she might speak French while using it…**_

* * *

Chapter 1

STATION SQUARE

MAY 24th, 3250

7:30 AM

Someone on radio was on a rant.

"Station Square has never been such in a good shape! While the Acorn referees are dumber than ever. And their colony, Four-Lakes, follows them. Do you remember when these French anthros could score well? Been a long time since!"

A well-known character is seen in his kitchen, trying a final time to make scrambled eggs.

"Well, thanks, Thomas, for this comment," the radio host said. "You`re a die-hard Station Square fan, and a Four-Lakes anti-fan! You`re definitely speaking my language. If those French Mobians could score better, maybe they`d end up in a better country!"

"Ah, stupid food! I`m the Ultimate Life Form and I can`t make valuable scrambled eggs."

Shadow, easily recognizable by his black fur with strands of red, threw the spatula on the floor. "Goddamn kitchen! If only Robotnik had programmed a full cooking book in my brain…"

Just then a fifteen years old teenager entered the kitchen.

"Oh, hi, son," Shadow said. Shadow and Rouge married ten years ago, after Eggman`s final defeat, where he was ultimately killed, and things somehow came back to normal. Anti-Mobius had been locked up on each side and it was now totally impossible for anyone to pass from one side to another, no matter what they would try. It was peace again on Mobius; so Shadow, who at first felt useless, decided to settle down with Rouge. They married and adopted a five years old child. For unknown reasons, Shadow could not have any kids. Maybe it was a safety taken by Robotnik sixty years ago to ensure the Ultimate Life Form would not reproduce. As of now, it has been happiness for the two of them, but Rouge kept being a government agent. Shadow also found a job as detective in Station Square Police Department. It was happiness, yes, but Rouge was almost always gone. Either on a mission or a jewel hunt.

"It`s 7:30 in Station Square," the radio host said.

The fox, named Matt, walked to the fridge and opened the door. "There`s nothing in here!" As Matt was leaving the kitchen, Shadow turned to him and asked:

"Where you goin`?"

"Back in my room…"

"Are you sure you don`t want to eat? Got scrambled eggs," Shadow said, pointing to his unsuccessful tries at making breakfast.

"You know, I`m not feeling for your eggs disaster, dad," Matt said.

Matt turned and started walking to his room, but Shadow asked:

"So, how was last night`s dance?"

"Oh, it was good," his son replied.

"Was it fun?"

Matt nodded. Just them a woman yelled "`Morning guys!" from the front door. Janet, Rouge`s sister, came in the kitchen. As Mat turned to his father, Shadow explained:

"Got a thing at work today, and if it`s really big, it might take me the whole day and night. I dunno when I`ll be back, so your godmother`s here to take care of you."

Janet and Matt high-fived. Janet approached the pan Shadow was using and moved him away.

"…I hope it won`t be so long," Shadow completed. "I hope to be a DJ one day too…"

Shadow`s stepsister turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"You know, a DJ…" Shadow said, moving his hands in front of him as if he was spinning disks like a disk-jokey. This earned him a "oh boy…" from Janet. "Desk Jammer, you know?" Shadow tried. Matt turned away.

"Yeah, right…" the fox said, heading to his room.

"Hey, where are you going? Tell us something fine about yesterday," Janet asked.

Matt came back in the kitchen. "Well, yesterday, I was the DJ at 8 PM, and it was crazy."

"Yes?" Janet said, interested.

"…it was just awesome. The dance floor was full; some had to dance on the tables. It was the real big party in there."

"For real?" Janet asked.

"And well, the hedgehog who went after me wasn`t popular at all, he got shooed and they asked me back. So I went and the party lifted off again."

"Super! All the girls must want to be with you," Janet said.

"Heh… well yeah, there was a red echidna girl…"

"Red echidna?" Shadow asked. This reminded him of someone.

"Yes…"

"Oh, never mind," Shadow said. "Just wondering."

"Hey, you know?" Janet began. "Let`s go grab breakfast somewhere else. I don`t think the egg disaster will do any good." And while going toward the front door, she continued: "I must know about all that. We won`t be interrupted. I want the details," she said, high-fiving again with Matt, then fiddling with his left ear. "Go take your stuff."

All Shadow could say was "bye." As his stepsister was approaching, he asked her: "What's the trick?"

"Which trick?" she replied.

"I just can`t get him to talk to me, and when you ask him, he has verbal diarrhea all of a sudden."

"Oh, come on, Shadow… you should have guessed, unless the Ultimate Life Form still has no clue after ten years of father life. He`s 15. It`s been over three thousand days he lives with you. You`re his father."

"Yeah, I know that. I`ll never understand teenagers."

"Now you`re talking like you are sixty, stepbrother." And Janet left toward the door.

"But I am 60 years old, in a way."

***

FOUR-LAKES

MAY 24th, 3250

7:30 AM

Annie, a bright blue hedgehog, entered the kitchen. Her past husband was there, to her great surprise. He was doing… yeah, toasts. As Alexis noticed her, he said:

"_Hello..._" Then, as he approached his ex-wife, he lowered his eyes to look at her cleavage, and added: "_…everyone._"

His ex understood what he meant and giggled, before saying "_idiot._" Alexis handed her a toast, which she bit into, before saying "_Thanks._"

Alexis was wearing a dark blue camisole and his denim pants. His ex was wearing a spaghetti-strapped shirt with a pale blue open shirt over it. She was also wearing tight jeans. They were divorced, but they were still living together; Alexis was using the upper level of the suburban house while Annie and their daughter Jen lived on the ground floor.

As Annie closed her pale shirt over her spaghetti-strapped one, Alexis put the plate on the dining table. Just then, Jen entered the room.

"_Dad!_" she yelled, jumping on Alexis. She was only ten years old, but she was already smart. As he caught her in the air and hugged her, she looked at Alexis` face and saw quite a bruise on his forehead. "_Is it a bad guy who knocked you?_"

"_Yeah, I found a guy who was more a knucklehead than your mom,_" the father said, making sure Annie understood. Alexis dropped Jen on the table.

"_Very funny,_" the hedgehog said before her daughter hugged her.

As Jen jumped from the counter, she asked:

"_Say, dad, I wanted to ask you something._"

"_Go ahead…_"

"_Can I get my belly button pierced?_"

Alexis looked at Annie, and then looked back at his daughter. "_What did mom say?_"

"_You know she hasn`t tried with me, eh. She knew what I would answer._"

As Jen was about to do the "puppy eyes" trick, Alexis sighed and said:

"_I`ll think about it, ok?_"

Jen`s smile of hope disappeared and a frown appeared instead. As she was leaving the kitchen, she turned around and told her father:

"_I said to my friends that you were the best father ever._"

"_It`s not going to work, I already know that I am._" Then, looking in the fridge: "_Jen, would you mind going on the first floor to get milk? There`s no milk here._"

That was one of the useful things when living separately in the same house; when one of the two was missing something, the other maybe had it upstairs or downstairs.

"_You can go get it yourself,_" Jen answered.

"_Go get it or else I`ll say no to your body-piercing. Okay, thanks, go, and bring the milk back._"

Jen looked at him with anger. "_That`s unfair! You can get your face sewed once a week, but now that `m old enough for that I just can`t?_"

"Go!" Alexis said, running toward his daughter and catching her off-guard. While in his arms, she laughed happily, as if the tension had disappeared all of a sudden. Alexis pushed Jen toward the stairs, while she was laughing out loud, and the coyote came back in the kitchen. Annie looked at him with some kind of nostalgia.

"_Get her belly button pierced? Where`d she get that idea?_" Alexis asked Annie. Then he noticed she was looking toward him, so he turned around, at first thinking she was looking at something else, then deducted it was him she was looking at. "_What?_"

Annie just sighed. "_Nothing… if only you could be like this for longer each time… maybe we`d still be married._"

"_Ah, please… some cops don`t have a daughter or a child at all… some have but just don`t have that kind of moment with them._"

"_I know, but between each moment like this, there`s the job… the girls… the job… the friends… the hulo… the job…_" Annie replied.

Just then the phone began ringing the famed Mexican hat tune.

"…_phone…"_

Alexis answered. "D`Coolette here… _Yeah…_ ah, come on, _it`s my day off."_

"_What was I saying again?_" Annie reminded him. "_Yeah, right… job…_"

"…_Okay, I`m coming,"_ Alexis ended the conversation on the phone. After closing his cell phone, he approached his ex-wife. "_Gotta go._" And he kissed her on the forehead. "_But yeah, it was interesting, I`ll make sure we continue talking about this soon._" Annie nodded. _"…one day."_

"_When Jen will be at Four-Lakes University I guess?_"

"_Not in that long, I swear._"

As Alexis was heading toward his room, on the first floor, to put his work clothes on, Annie told him:

"_Don`t forget about your daughter`s play!_"

Alexis turned to her. "_As if I was gonna forget about that._" And he headed to his room. But seconds later, his head popped up in the doorway. "Annie… _When is it already?_"

"_At four_," she answered. As Alexis was going back again in his room, which he still hadn`t reached, Annie lectured him. "_How do you want me to find a boyfriend? I have a child, and an adult child to care about._"

"_Oh, don`t say that, you know you`ll find someone. Your breasts are still beautiful._"

This made Annie laugh. As she pushed his out of the doorway, she told him "_okay, Casanova. Go play cop. Go work._"

And Alexis finally headed into his room, and prepared for another normal day – it would have been, it should have been a day off, but well… a cop`s work is never finished.

***

He arrived on the crime scene in a flash, as fast as his pathetic excuse of a car could go. When he parked near the scene, he couldn`t help but notice another cop, probably a detective, waiting for him, his arms crossed. It was a black hedgehog with red stripes. It had a serious look, and he seemed to be only seventeen of physical age. Alexis wondered if that was just a joke, but a whole team of cops was already on the scene. It`s just then that Alexis noticed the body embedded in the sign…

To be continued.


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don`t own. Sadly.

Oh, remember, what`s _italicized_ is in French, while what is underlined is usually some curse words.

* * *

Chapter 2

FRONTIER BETWEEN FOUR-LAKES AND STATION SQUARE

MAY 24th, 3250

9:40 AM

Shadow was wearing nothing but a jacket with two pockets. The Ultimate Life Form, sitting slightly on his car`s hood, immediately noticed the very old car that had just arrived on the scene. The coyote coming out of it was maybe 30 or 32 years old, and looked more of a civilian than anything else. But the police plaque held on to the coyote`s neck by a necklace was enough to understand he was also going to investigate. The coyote slowly came out of his car, which strangely had no windows apart the windshield and back window, and shut the door in a swift motion. This caused the car door`s mirror to fall off. Shadow would have laughed at this obvious failure, but it was not time to laugh. The coyote picked up the mirror on the asphalt and threw it on his car`s backseat through the nonexistent window on the driver side. Shadow walked to the newcomer.

Alexis jumped over the yellow plastic tape.

"Tabarnak, _who did that friggin` barrage? It took me two goddamn hours just to get into my own crime scene!_"

"_Yes, but, Alex…_" a cop began.

"_For you, today, it`s detective Alex! Got it?_"

As "Alex" was also coming to Shadow, the black and red hedgehog showed his detective plaque and said "Shadow," to which the French detective answered "Alexis Depardieu Coolette."

Shadow used what he knew of French to say "Enchanté" (which is "nice to meet you").

"Hey, "enchanté"!" Alexis said, surprised. Then turning to the French cops, which were anthros and humans, behind him: "Hey guys, we found an Ainglishe cop dat can spick de French!" This made the policemen laugh. Shadow, however, didn`t find it funny at all. When he has been made, Robotnik had installed him every language spoken on Mobius (or at least the four or five most spoken ones, and apparently French was part of it). Shadow had understood that Alexis was poking fun at the language.

Alexis turned to the sign saying "Leaving Station Square, welcome to Four-Lakes" on one side and "Leaving Four-Lakes, welcome to Station Square" on the other. "Is this the victim?" he said, pointing to the body embedded on the sign.

"Well, to say it`s a victim isn`t totally true as of now. We just can say for sure that he didn`t spend the night sleeping at home. Luckily, there`s not much blood."

Alexis bent his head from one side of the sign to another, and thought about something.

"_Well, it was nice to meet you. Good luck guys._" Alexis started heading toward his old car probably dating from 3220 or before then.

"Hey, wait a minute, where are you going?" Shadow asked Alexis.

"_Home. _This is your case for sure."

"What do you mean by "our case"? To me, it`s more like it`s your problem."

"What makes you think that?" Alexis walked back to Shadow. "Look out: his feet are on the Station Square side."

"Yes and his head is on the Four-Lakes side. So?"

"So? When you play a sport, badminton, volleyball, soccer or whatever… if you walk over the line, you`re out." Then, to his co-workers: "_Okay, guys, we got nothing to do here,_ on décrisse." (This means something like "we`re leaving")

"Should I remind you that in any running competition, it`s the head or the chest that breaks the tape. I know that too well. And in horse racing, it`s the nose that counts. In soccer, if you touch the ball with the hands, you`re out as well."

His argument made sense. Alexis could do nothing else but go back for a second time to where he was. He scratched the back of his left ear (something he does when thinking), and approached the sign from the Station Square side. Shadow walked to him and sent him back on the Four-Lakes side.

"_What_, you want me to show you a passport or something?"

"As you can see, the subject was a proud Four-Laker. His heart is still in Four-Lakes."

"_Yes, but he also has Station Square up the ass…_" Alexis replied jokingly, hoping Shadow would not understand it. His French co-workers laughed at the remark.

"Excuse me?" the hedgehog asked.

"I said that he`s got Station Square in the butt crack. His ass belongs to you."

"Okay then. We`re taking the case." Shadow answered after some seconds of thinking. Then, walking to the Station Square side of the sign and talking to his English co-workers: "Take out the ladder."

Alexis probably had the same idea, because he immediately yelled to the French cops: "_The ladder!_"

On each side of the sign now, an anthro was climbing a ladder. Shadow looked down to see if any Station Square policeman was holding the ladder to ensure it doesn`t fall. Alexis was doing the same thing. Shadow took out of his jacket`s pocket a camera and took pictures of the body, which was strangely stuck in the sign. The body`s chest was half cut by the sign, on the side. The other half, left untouched, was apparently un-injured.

"Don`t move him," Shadow ordered Alexis.

"_How do you want me to move, him, he`s stuck in the sign,_ stie…" (This last word is another curse word, for those who wonder)

"Ah, never mind. Let`s just get it over with."

The cops on either sides were watching the scene, ready to react in case one of the two detectives was to fall off the ladder he was climbed on. Alexis looked at the body`s wrists and saw marks of a tightly-tied rope, deducting the victim was attached to something before falling off. Looking now on the victim`s right forearm, he saw a strange drawing. Some kind of tattoo.

"_Hey, what`s this?_"

"Be careful not to move anything."

But Alexis` ladder fell down, so Alexis hung to the dead body stuck in the sign; Shadow, surprised by this sudden movement, also let the ladder fell off; but to avoid falling down, he caught the body`s legs.

"Shit," they said each in their own language. Just then they heard a strange noise, like an arm being broken. The body was about to cut in half because of their weights!

"Don`t…"Shadow began.

But the body broke in two halves, and the detectives fell down. As soon as they hit the ground, the cops from each team rushed to help them.

***

FOUR-LAKES POLICE DEPARTMENT

MAY 24th, 3250

NOON

Shadow was now in Captain Lebeu`s office, in Four-Lakes. (Notice: That`s his French name; he can also be nicknamed Captain Oxen) Captain Lebeu, an ox, for anyone who wouldn`t have guessed, was patiently waiting for Alexis to enter. Right beside him was a male cat with already some grey fur around the head. Alexis finally entered.

"Good morning," Shadow greeted him.

"Hey, nice black and red fur. It`s got an emo look, totally your style," Alexis said as an insult. "_What's the spike-head doing here?" _he asked his boss.

"_So you`ve met Shadow…_" Captain Oxen said. "_The guy besides me is Claw McKaz, Captain of SSPD._" He was of course talking about the Station Square Police Department.

"Nice to meet you," Captain Claw said, extending his right hand.

"_Yeah, right,_" Alexis replied. "_What am I doing here at this hour?_"

Captain Oxen turned to Captain Claw. Oxen`s English is not as good as Alexis`, so he sometimes searches his words when speaking English. "You… wanna talk, Claw?"

"No, we`re in your city, it`s your jurisdiction," Claw answered.

"I, uh… insist," Oxen replied.

"Fine. We know that the victim is from Four-Lakes."

Just then, Captain Oxen stood up from the chair he was sitting on, and repeated the exact same thing Captain Claw just said, and added some dramatic effect to it. "_WE KNOW! That the victim… is from Four-Lakes City._"

Shadow looked at Captain Oxen and held back his laugh. Was the French captain thinking he was in a play or what?

"We are unsure yet if it is a case of murder, and if it`s really this, where the murderer comes from."

"_We are unsure… yet, if it is a case of, uh… MURDER, and if it`s really this, where the MURDERER, uh… comes from._"

"So, uh… Captain Oxen and I decided this would be a good time…"

"_And we thought, Captain Lebeu and me, that it would be a good, uh… opportunity, to…_"

Alexis realized Captain Oxen was only repeating, as he mistakenly repeated his own name. "_Okay, boss, I understand English._"

"Ah? Uh, um… okay, erm… Okay, Claw, Alexis, um… can English," Captain Oxen told Claw. his made Shadow smile.

"Come again?"

"He CAN English…"

"What?"

"He can…" Captain Oxen mimicked someone talking, and Captain Claw understood.

"Ah okay. Well, go first."

"Okay, I go, I go. So, we "taut" it was a good topor…otorpun…"

"Opportunity", Captain Claw corrected.

"…that it was a good, um… hopportunety… to be…"

"_You can speak French, Captain,_" Shadow said, surprising the three other people in the room. Captain Oxen muttered a French curse word. Alexis looked at Shadow.

"_You speak French?_"

"_No, I don`t speak French…_" Shadow began. "_A mad scientist installed a chip in my brain_ so that I see subtitles below the people when they speak. _Yes, I speak French._ I was kidding for the subtitle part, but not for the chip. _When I was created, they installed me something in the brain and I know perfectly English, French, and some other languages._"

Alexis still didn`t understand it. After all, Alexis didn`t know that Shadow is the Ultimate Life Form…

"_Oh, and for a past case, I also spent a year in the Acorn Kingdom, so I`m using their French_."

"_That`s why you`re getting on my nerves then…_"

A fifth person entered the room. Alexis recognized him right away.

"_Antoine? What are you doing here?_"

Alexis` cousin approached him and whispered: "_I`m the one who suggested you go on that case. So you`re just gonna do it, okay?_" Then, to Captain Claw McKaz: "Have you told dem aboot zee caze?"

"Yes we did," the captain answered. To Shadow, Claw and Alexis, it was speaking awful English. Only Captain Oxen didn`t mind.

"Well…" Antoine began while walking in front of the two detectives. "Wee have a caze dat recooires purr-fect cooperation from Station Squoare and For-Laikes."

"_Speak in French, damnit!_" Shadow yelled, losing his temper when hearing how that French guy was messing up English even worse than Captain Oxen.

"_As I was saying…_" Antoine said in French. "_This case requires total cooperation from the two sides. Station Square and Four-Lakes have to unite their forces for this one. If we can show G.U.N. that our cities can help each other, it will be very good for our image, and also for the following investigations` budgets._"

On this, Captain Oxen couldn`t help but smile. Cash is needed, after all. And since G.U.N. somehow directs the two Police Departments, they`re the ones who give the money.

"_So, until this case is closed, you two are…_ partners," Captain Oxen finished.

"You`re kidding me, right?" Shadow yelled to Captain Claw.

"_It`s a joke, isn`t it?_" Alexis yelled.

"_Hey, listen!_" Captain Oxen shouted while walking toward Alexis. "_If I can trust what Antoine told me about the past case and that you hid from us, I think you have no other choice. If I were you, I`d accept, or else I would be fired, got it?_"

"I just had a rough night," Shadow told his boss. "I can`t work with Rambo!"

"You don`t have any other choice…" Captain Claw told his employee. "You want to be a Desk Jammer, don`t you?" Shadow understood his boss menaced to fire him if he didn`t accept.

Alexis and Shadow looked at each other a final time before leaving Captain Oxen`s office. When they were out of sight, Antoine said:

"_I`m sure they`ll get along well._"

"Not that sure, finally," Captain Claw said, noticing how the tension was rising between the detectives.


	4. Chapter 3

Good old disclaimer: I only own half/two thirds of the characters and things in this story. All the others belong to SEGA. The movie this fanfic is based on belongs to Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm. I don`t own that company.

Don`t forget to review, I feed on these. And right now I`m really hungry.

* * *

Chapter 3

SOMEWHERE IN FOUR-LAKES

MAY 24th, 3250

12:05 PM

A male human was walking down the stairs when his cell phone suddenly rang. He answered it.

"_Goaler here… what? … when did it happen_?"

The man was walking to his car, which is in an underground parking.

"_It`s impossible, everyone liked Edward… I don`t think so; if he had problems with clients, he`d tell me…_"

Goaler, whatever his first name is, was wearing a three-piece suit and was holding a case by his left hand; the right hand was busy holding the cell phone.

"_Yes, I know him since the Dashers file has opened… we kept contact since. Was someone else of the family the target? ... Okay."_

However, as the rich owner had reached his car, someone who was hiding behind a pillar showed up and made sure he`s out of Goaler`s eyesight.

"_Listen, if I can do anything, call me. Thanks._"

The rich man hung up and proceeds to open his car`s trunk, just as the masked killer appears behind him.

"_Hi, Mike…_" the killer said, not even using a voice modulator. Mike Goaler, now done opening his car`s trunk, turned to look at the one who was talking to him. "_I was waiting for you._" And the masked walrus punched Mike. The rich man fell unconscious in his car`s trunk, and the masked walrus managed to hide him entirely in the trunk. And the walrus finally closed the trunk, leaving the man to his unknown fate.

FLPD CORONER ROOM

MAY 24th, 3250

12:30 PM

Hood the bee and Alexis are each standing on a side of the body`s top half, which rests on a table.

"_That had to hurt…_" the bee commented in his sped-up talking. Just then Shadow arrived in the coroner room, saying what he discovered.

"Full name: Mac Edward. Age: 46. Occupation: Partner at Edward-Goaler-Greenberg-Toutunovitch-Macandmike Inc. Corp. since a few days only. Marital status: divorced. Kids: none. Belongings: three condos, one in Station Square, one in Knothole, one in Soleanna. Works over sixty hours a week, which, for a Four-Laker, is really over average. Mob links: none. Organizations: Reflect Golf Club member. Transportation: a blue SonicSpeed Akora. Anything else you want to know?"

"_Yes. How did you learn all that? Got a mind-scanner behind your pupils or something similar?_"

"…_very funny, coyote. No, I called the SSPD and they told me everything they knew. Just had to remember it and tell you._"

"_Shadow, this is Hood, Hood, this is Shadow…_" Alexis presented the two anthros.

Shadow extended his hand, but Hood extended the hand in a plastic glove covered with blood… so Shadow retired his hand.

"Enchanté."

"_Hi._"

"_I know that at first sight, Shadow looks like an emo teenager…" Alexis said. "But he`s not a teenager._"

"_Okay…_" Hood replied.

"_Can you tell us…_" Shadow began.

"_A which height the body fell?_" Hood began, already speaking at Mach 5 speed. "_Depends on the helicopter`s speed._"

"_Wait, who talked about a helicopter?_" Alexis asked.

"_It`s me, I just talked about it… I thought you were an expert at deduction, Alex… Look, a plane goes too fast, the body would have cut in half without you two, can't be a fucked up parachute, he`d still have it on his back, nobody throws himself off a hang-glider, it`s way too complicated to undo all the straps and stuff. The hot air balloon festival`s only in two months, if it was a rocket pack he couldn`t have landed so precisely, and if it`s the stork, I dunno how it did because it got caught into an aerial 46 years long traffic jam. So, only one choice is left: a helicopter. But to go back to the original question, I`d say about eighty meters. For you, Shadow, it`s somewhere around two hundred thirty feet, but it`s not too precise. A non-moving body usually falls down thirty meters per second, so according to the damages, it`s minimum twenty meters, maximum eighty. But in my opinion, it can`t be sixty-five meters, because the sign is about five meters tall, that means he would have fell down sixty meters, which means two seconds. It`s too clear, it sounds impossible, nothing`s so precise in life. So in my opinion, eighty meters._"

He had said the whole thing in thirty seconds. It was too fast for the detectives to follow, but they managed to understand most of it.

"_What`s this?_" Shadow asked, pointing to the tattoo on Mac`s left forearm.

"_That`s a, um… how do you say "tattoo" in English?_"

"A tattoo…"

"_A taat-too? A taaat-too. Weird, isn`t it? In French we say it without any long syllable, but in English, there`s two Ts and two Os, but it`s the A that you say long… fun._"

"_Why is there blood?_" Shadow asked.

"_Well, if the guy fell down over two hundred, he broke hard, right?_" Alexis asked. "_Anyway, a tattoo takes how much time to heal? Ten days?"_

"_Oh, that`s fresher…That`s only hours ago. It hasn`t even begun healing._"

Shadow looked at Hood, who explained it with a small part of a song. Shadow understood.

"_But then, why…_"

"_Why this part isn`t bleeding? Strange, isn`t it? The guy could have begun it a month ago and finished it this morning…_" he said, waiting for Alex`s answer. "_Beep! Wong answer. Station Square`s turn._" Before Shadow could answer, Hood cut him off: "_Beep! Too long. It`s upside-down. The part that isn`t bleeding has been made after the guy`s death. The part that is bleeding was made before the guy`s death. We can learn of that thanks to the skin`s and the blood`s pigmentation. In other words, he was dead before falling. If one had tattooed him something after his death, he sure wouldn`t have waited for the guy to be stuck in the sign. And look at this…_"

Hood turned the victim`s face toward him, and Alexis and Shadow could see two huge bleeding spots on each side of the victim`s back of the head.

"_The coagulation of this injury is similar to the one of the bleeding tattoo. The injuries from the fall are too recent, the patterns are different._"

"_You mean he was dead before falling?_" Alexis asked. Hood nodded. "_Then, why the tattoo? A signature?_"

"Sounds logical to me. A rich man will never wear a tattoo. When you`re wearing a many hundred rings worth tuxedo, and you`re part of a big company as one of the main owners, you don`t want to ruin it all by having a tattoo on your forearm," Shadow explained.

"_Why not?_"

"_It`s not very classy._"

"_The actress Shade… got_ tattoos," Hood said. Shadow wondered if he was talking about that red echidna from the Twilight Cage, which they met thirteen years ago.

"That`s what I meant," Shadow finished. "_But why Four-Lakes` official symbol shaped into a balance?_"

"_I could give you a thousand reasons…_" Alexis began.

"One is enough," Shadow replied.

"_We`re gonna go ask his partners. Thanks Hood._"

"_No problem. If I find anything else, I`ll call you._"

As Shadow and Alexis came out of the coroner`s room, Shadow said:

"I`m sorry, but I didn`t get half of what he said… he was speaking too fast!"

"_Me neither, but if we don`t have the same half, we`re okay._"

***

FOUR-LAKES STREET

MAY 24TH, 3250

1:00 PM

With Alexis` dangerous driving, Shadow was afraid for an accident to happen. Alexis` pathetic excuse for a car, as he learned, was a CheRookie over twenty years old. It was almost falling in pieces, yet it could survive any mistreatment, as if it had superpowers or an extreme defensive capability. Alexis was driving over eighty miles per hour, not even slowing down in turns, and was certainly in a hurry. It was even more dangerous because it was raining. The wipers were on, but it was not enough.

Shadow`s cell phone rang, so he took it out of his jacket`s other pocket. "Hello? … … Oh, true? Hey, Alex…"

"_What?_" the driver asked.

"We can go see Edward`s partners later, we got something else. Just as we guessed, there was no registered helicopter flying over the frontier yesterday night. However, a farmer saw a helicopter fly over his corn field. If hopefully he saw right, the machine was from "Dragonfly Helicopters", a small company at twenty minutes from here."

"_Okay. So, what do we do first? Do we go see the farmer right away or we go to Dragonfly first?_"

"Let`s go to Dragonfly Helicopters first."

However, as they were about to reach some traffic lights, they saw the road was blocked by a car which probably ran out of gas. Alexis spun the steering wheel in a swift motion, and his car ended on the sidewalk. This surprised Shadow, who was only thinking about the walkers that might get run over by Alexis` craziness.

"What are you doing?"

Alexis couldn`t answer, he was still steering to avoid the walkers. A human in a jogging suit was running in front of them, maybe trying to escape the car. Maybe the guy or the girl hadn`t noticed the car, but with all the noise it made, it was difficult not to notice. People pushed out of the way as the old car went at full speed on the sidewalk, as if there was nobody.

"You can`t do that, you don`t even have a siren to tell them you`re coming."

"Open_ your window and do it with your mouth!_" Alexis joked.

As there was finally an opening for the car to pass, the CheRookie was piloted to come back on the street. No, wait, it was a parking. Some people, probably walking to their own car, pushed out of the way, after Alexis honked. The car took a final turn and ended on the street for real, where it crossed the path of a car, which had to brake to avoid the collision.

"We need some rules between the two of us," Shadow said.

"_I don`t mind,_" Alexis replied. "_Rule number 1: We`re in Four-Lakes, so I`m in charge. I also do the fights and pursuits._"

"That means I only have illegal car maneuvers and traffic violations to care about, is that it?"

"_As long as it implies no ladder,_" Alexis said jokingly.

"Oh, and no smoking."

"_I`m not smoking._"

Shadow sighed. Reaching for the handle which opens the car`s window, he got the bad surprise of the handle staying in his hand.

"This car is totally like you," Shadow said.

"_Thanks. Oh, here`s another rule. We do nothing on impulse,_" Alexis added.

"You`re always breaking that rule!" Shadow yelled.

"_I know. I meant: no impulse that might kill someone._"

"That`s what I was saying. You`re always breaking that rule."

The car finally parked near Dragonfly Helicopters. Shadow was feeling better just because the car had stopped moving. "That piece of junk should already be in a junkyard", he thought.

To be continued…


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

DRAGONFLY HELICOPTERS

MAY 24th, 3250

2:00 PM

"Rule number twenty-seven, I`m interrogating the witnesses. And I`m the one doing the talking," Shadow said as soon as his feet hit the asphalt.

"_No, problem, but you do it in French._"

"It depends from where the witness comes from."

"_No, here we`re in Four-Lakes, we work in French. Rule number twenty-eight._"

"Fine. That means we`re gonna work in English for Station Square and some surroundings under my jurisdiction, except maybe half of White Mountain City."

"_Woah, it`s not going well. Talk in French already, we know you can._"

They entered the building and walked toward the counter. A shy, more-than-slightly overweight female squirrel cashier saw them coming. She replaced her blue cap between her ears and adjusted her jacket.

"Station Square Police Department," Shadow said, showing his plaque.

"_In French…_" Alexis reminded him.

"_Yeah, right. Station Square Police Department. We wanted to know about the helicopters that left your base yesterday._"

"_Oh wait a minute,_" the squirrel said, blushing slightly. "_I think I have it somewhere… it`s not everyday that a cop enters to ask us such information…_"

"_Take all the time you need, madam,_" Shadow told her. "_How many helicopters do you have?_"

"…_three. But one`s getting repaired. The two others left at one hour or another. And the owner left with some Station Square people at White Mountain for a meeting._"

"_Has any helicopter flown near the frontier between Four-Lakes and Station Square?_" Shadow asked.

"_We don`t know. The reports do not indicate it. However, Luck, one of our pilots, left yesterday for a round-trip. Wait, there`s something strange…_"

"_What's weird?_" Alexis asked. Shadow grumbled. "_Oh yeah, right, you do the interrogation, go ahead._"

"_What's weird?_" Shadow demanded.

"_Well, I don't wanna put anyone in trouble, but Luck left with one of the helicopters yesterday in the evening. Oh, it`s maybe only for maintenance…_" the cashier said, smiling with all her teeth. "_Maybe that`s why it`s not registered._"

"_Do you have this mister`s…_"

"_Luck. Luck the walrus,_" the cashier answered.

"_Do you have Luck`s cell phone number or something so we can join him?_"

"_I don`t think you`ll need it, usually at this hour he`s at Roadside Bar, gulping down a couple of beers._"

"_Thanks, madam,_" Shadow ended.

"_No problem,_" the squirrel said, almost fainting. As Alexis was about to follow Shadow back to the car, the cashier asked him:

"_Oh, detective._"

"_Yes?_"

"_Don`t you have any phone number where I could join you in case I have more…information?_" the cashier asked.

"_Um… I kinda don`t have any paper on me…_" Alexis searched his pockets. The cashier laughed, pulling out from below the desk a notepad. She prepared to write the numbers as Alexis told them. "_Five… nine… three…_" The cashier stood read to write any next number. "_That`s all._" The cashier looked at the three numbers and understood it was the Four-Lakes emergency phone number, so she went with another lighthearted laugh. "_The guys will know how to reach me. Just ask for Shadow._"

"_Shadow… ooh…_" the girl commented as Alexis was rushing to the car, where his partner was waiting for him. The squirrel couldn`t help but watch Alexis run, and a small sigh escaped her mouth.

"Do you really have to flirt with every female witness?" Shadow asked him.

"_What was I saying?_" Alexis said.

"_Oh yeah, right, French…_" Shadow recalled. "_Anyway, are you trying to be more a Casanova than Scourge?_"

"_Scourge?_" Alexis asked as he embarked in his car.

"_You know, Sonic`s anti counterpart…_"

"_No, I don`t._"

"_Oh yeah, right, I almost forgot… almost nothing happens in Four-Lakes City, it`s all either in Station Square, either anywhere else,_" Shadow remarked, embarking on the passenger seat. Alexis turned the key in and prepared to drive to Roadside Bar, only minutes further. "_You never heard of it from Antoine?_"

"_No… he just tells me about how Sonic`s so awesome a ruler in Knothole, and that kind of thing._"

"_Well, thirteen years ago, we had an awful lot of problems with Anti-Mobius, an alternate reality, where everyone is the exact counterpart of us. That means Anti-Alexis would be calm, always think before acting…_"

"_And would be a scaredy cat I guess?_"

"_Exactly. Well, ten years ago, as Sonic defeated Eggman for the final time, he released some kind of power that shut down every mechanism that could let any of us go from one world to the other. Well, Scourge is Sonic`s Anti counterpart, and he was too powerful for any of us. We were just happy to have defeated him. And I guess you know the rest._"

"_Yes I do. Sonic became the ruler of the Knothole Zone, and asked everyone to help in building back the whole place. Now Sonic is not only a hero, but also the King, and apparently he`s an excellent king. But why exactly are we talking about that?_"

"_I was saying you`re trying to be more a Casanova than Scourge,_" Shadow recalled.

"_Not my bad; that cashier squirrel wanted my number. Anyway, at least, thanks to you, I know more than Antoine could ever teach me._"

"_No problem. But, one thing has been bugging… minutes ago, you talked about impulses… that might kill someone. What did you mean exactly?_"

"_Oh, I don`t want to talk about it. Let`s just say you`re not the worst partner I had,_" Alexis answered.

"_I bet it`s something you want to erase off your memory," Shadow deducted. "Something that might get you in trouble if people were to know about it._"

"_Exactly._"

"_Let me guess… Is it what Captain Oxen was talking about when lecturing you? Something that Antoine knew and that should not have been told?_"

"_Hey, are we here for an interrogatory with Luck or I`m the one being interrogated?_"

"_Okay. We`re arrived at Roadside Bar._"

The name was written in big bold letters over the bar`s main door. Roadside Bar was a dark, adult, place, like we rarely see them. Or at least, we rarely see them open at this hour. Alexis carelessly parked the car at a nearby motel`s parking, and when coming out of the car, Shadow told him:

"Name: Luck Species: walrus. Age: thirty-five years old. Marital status: divorced. _Spent five years in jail for cocaine traffic. Then, nothing more. Is also known as the French Stopper. He`s also an employee of Dragonfly Helicopters since three years._"

"Luck the French Stopper… reminds me of something… maybe I arrested him some time ago." Alexis was also heading to the bar when Shadow grabbed him.

"_Wait, don`t you remember? I do the interrogatory._"

"I _don`t mind. I`ll even let you enter first. I`m gonna get in some minutes after you._"

"_Fine. That way you`ll see how works a hedgehog who`s over sixty years old. Maybe you`ll learn a few things… _See you in there in five or ten minutes."

Shadow was already sticking his plaque out of his pocket. "Hey, what are you doing?" Alexis asked. "_No badge in there, mostly if it`s a badge from Station Square! You`ll get your ass kicked so hard that you won`t be able to sit for a week._" So Shadow hid again his badge in his jacket`s pockets. Once Shadow was out of sight, Alexis noticed his car`s front left wheel was missing its hubcap.

ROADSIDE BAR

MAY 24th, 3250

2:15 PM

"Another beer here!" The busty barmaid yelled. The waitresses, which were anthros as well as humans for the two types of people in there, ach had their top half nearly bare naked, with the exception of some who were wearing a bikini top or a bra. Some waitresses were also almost completely naked for their bottom half. No need to explain this is a very adult bar. The windows were all covered by thick curtains so that people outside the bar don`t see the almost nude beauties in there. The result is that the interior of the bar was dark, but clear enough for anyone to see where their beer bottle was.

Shadow entered the bar, and saw everything in there, thinking that whoever owns this bar must have been a terrible pervert. Since he`s married, he tried his best not to watch around. When the barmaid, a black bat with red makeup, saw him enter, she lowered a bit her neckline and moved seductively to have a better look at the male hedgehog that just entered.

"_Hello, my black one… What can I offer you?_"

Shadow sat on a chair and put his crossed arms on the counter.

"_I`ll have a ginger ale,_ straight up, please." It was getting just a bit difficult for him not to look, as the beauties were too many and too present. The waitress left toward the hoses. Shadow looked around.

"_Ice?_" the bat asked Shadow.

"_No thanks,_" the hedgehog replied. He looked at the barmaid; she reminded him strangely of his spouse. She took the ginger ale gun, and filled up the glass. Then she mimicked a cop blowing in his gun after a gunshot. This made Shadow smile. As the barmaid was coming back to him with his glass, he asked her: "_I`m searching a helicopter pilot._"

"_We`re not out of stock for this here!_" the barmaid answered. She even had Rouge`s kind of humor. "_Take it as a welcome gift,_" she said, putting the glass in front of him.

"_Thanks. I`m searching for one in particular. A walrus. Luck the walrus. Where can I find him?_"

"_Luck? You`re lucky, my black one, because he`s just behind you, playing pool._"

Outside the bar, Alexis had managed to find back the hubcap and it was installed. Now it was boring as hell. Alexis walked in a circle for about a minute, practiced his punches on his CheRookie`s trunk, played hopscotch with his car keys, and muttered a French swear.

Inside the bar, the fat walrus known as Luck was approaching the counter. "_Carta, gimme two beers._" The walrus sat right beside Shadow. Luck was wearing a denim jacket and a black cap with the silhouette of a hulo player holding the hulo stick on it.

"_Nice jacket,_" Shadow told him.

"_Thanks… emo,_" Luck answered. "_Nice mix of black and red._ _Just kidding. Carta, why don't you pa another glass to the hedgehog?"_

"_Ginger ale again?_" Carta asked, her face at a feet of Shadow`s. This made the walrus laugh.

"_Ginger ale? Want us to call Reinbeer?_" Shadow will ask Alexis what that pun was for as soon as they have some time.

"_Did you know that the Mobian Society of Alcohols says that when drinking alcohol, two drinks may make wonders on our health? But three or more bring us nearer to our own coffin,_" Shadow said, hoping Luck would not already know.

"_Hey, Luck, if we believe what he said, it`s maybe a year since your death!_" Carta said. Now Luck was the one laughed at. Just then, Alexis entered the bar. What Shadow was trying not to look at, he was taking fully in view. After all, he`s divorced, isn't he?

Luck looked back at Shadow. "_I use alcohol to calm down… mostly when someone gets on my nerves._"

"_Have you tried yoga?_" Shadow asked.

"_As of me, I use yoga regularly, I know pretty much all the positions…_" the barmaid said.

"_We know your positions too, Carta,_" Luck told her, and Shadow understood he was implying some kind of prostitution.

"_Show some respect to her,_" Shadow interrupted. The black and red hedgehog heard Alexis behind, so he deducted the French detective had entered the place. If he was to turn around, the walrus would understand they`re two cops looking for him. Alexis had suggested a game of pool to some customers.

"_Where are you from?_" Luck asked.

"Station Square," the detective answered.

"_Oh, that`s why I hate your face,_" the walrus replied. "_What are you doing here then?_"

"_A simple survey._" Shadow rose from his chair. "_I have a few questions to ask you about Mac Edward, we know there is a lin…_" Shadow avoided the punch Luck was trying to use and caught his arm. Holding Luck down on his knees, he tried again. "_When I say "Mac Edward", does it ring a bell?_" Then, to Alexis: "_I`m okay._"

But Luck punched Shadow in the privates, which stood him breathless. Luck had enough time to take control and caught Shadow at the throat. But Shadow, in a swift motion, freed himself from the helicopter pilot`s grip, and easily took control back. Doing as if he had nothing to do in this, Alexis was slowly placing pool balls in the triangle. But the brawl worsened as Luck threw the two of them on their knees. Shadow grabbed Luck at his throat, but Luck grabbed a nearby glass and broke it on Shadow`s forehead. Carta, who was looking at the fight, could do nothing. She was used to have brawls in the bar, and usually she could scare them off by breaking a bottle on the counter and use it as a weapon, but terror was paralyzing her. Alexis grabbed a pool club, getting ready to play. But near the counter, Luck had finally stuck Shadow and was strangling him, also blocking his arms so that the hedgehog couldn`t defend.

"Coolette!" Shadow yelled. "Help me! Please, do something!" he said, taking breaths between each words. He was lacking his breath, which didn`t help. Alexis looked at the two of them.

"_Anyone here understands English, because I think the blue-headed black ad red hedgehog over there is screaming for help…_" This made many players around the pool table laugh.

"_HELP ME!_" Shadow yelled, almost fainting. "_PLEASE!_"

"_Coming!_" Alexis said, walking to help Shadow. But the French cop was blocked by one of the pool players, which was wielding a pool club.

"_It`s none of your business!_" the player said. Alexis took the guy`s pool club and smashed him right on the head with it. He had to punch two or three times the guy, but finally, Alexis could go help Shadow. But another, bigger obstacle was put in his way: a big anthro bear with a long, black beard. Alexis took one of the pool game`s balls and smacked the fat bear`s head with it, knocking him unconscious. Then he threw the ball at Luck`s head, and this disturbed the walrus long enough for Shadow to get out of trouble. Shadow was able to stop Luck from moving, held the walrus` arms behind his back and said:

"_Thanks._"

"_Okay, I`m gonna do it now._"

"_I don`t think it`s a good idea, Alex…_" Shadow began.

"_We said it earlier, Shad. I`m doing the fighting. Go take a short break, I`ll be okay._"

As Alexis took Shadow`s place, Luck freed himself from the hedgehog`s grip, and hit Alexis with his right elbow. As Alexis was slightly unable of thinking, Luck struck him with his head with such force that the two adults hit the table behind them and broke it. Now Luck was over Alexis, and punched him hard. Shadow decided to play just like Alexis did for him, and talked with Carta.

"_Is Luck nervous these days?_"

"_More than usual, my black one,_" the barmaid answered. Behind them, Luck had grabbed a chair and was sticking it at Alexis` throat, throttling him.

"_Shadow, help me!_"

"_Can I have some lemon with my ginger ale, please?_" Shadow asked Carta.

"_Shadow, quit joking!_" Alexis begged.

"_If there`s any problem, here`s my card with my number on it,_" Shadow said, handing a card to Carta. Then, to Alexis: "Sorry, I don`t understand French."

"Screw you," the coyote said, out of breath.

"Right language, wrong words!" the hedgehog answered.

"Shadow, help me, please…" Alexis said finally. It was not time to act superior, Luck`s chair on Alexis` throat was seriously dangerous.

"_Excuse me,_" Shadow said Carta. The English cop arrived behind Luck and took a revolver out of his jacket`s pockets. "_Let my partner go,_" he said with his gun pointed at the walrus` temple. Luck could do nothing else but to surrender.

To be continued…

* * *

Author`s notes: Hey, I already have one fourth of the whole movie done! And up to now, it all makes sense in Sonic`s universe! I gotta admit this was the biggest problem here.

Also, the short talk about Sonic was not useless, as he will appear later on. Maybe a cameo, maybe a more important role. But at least, Sonic fans won`t hate his only appearance. Also, Alexis` souvenir he doesn`t want to talk about will be revealed in a chapter.

I know the fic looks a lot like the movie, but there will be many scenes that you will not find in the movie (such as Alexis and Shadow`s talk about what happened in the past). Once in a while, these scenes will pop up. For anyone who has watched the movie, and recognized the whole thing, I suggest you try and look for these scenes. Besides, seeing the movie with anthros and Sonic characters is pretty cool.


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I still don`t own the original movie this story is based on. I also down`t own a few characters. Almos everything else is mine, including the scene at the end of this chapter, which is not from the movie. It might help you understand what happened since thirteen years.

* * *

Chapter 5

ROADSIDE BAR - PARKING  
MAY 24th, 3250  
2:30 PM

Alexis threw Luck in his car`s trunk. The walrus landed in a lot of noise, and the French detective began placing Luck`s members so that he can fit in the trunk, which was not an easy task because of the walrus` weight and overall musculature. Shadow could only be ashamed by how his partner was acting.

"I don`t know if you`re going by your own laws because you`re a knucklehead, because you`re crazy, or just because you speak French."

Alexis was badly injured on the face, as a trail of blood was going from his eyebrow to Seeing how Alexis was having problems with the witness, Shadow pushed him out of the way. "You can`t do that!" Shadow tried something, but the helicopter driver spat on him. A look of disgust appeared on the black and red hedgehog`s face, and he took a tissue out of one of his pockets. He wiped off the sputum from his face, while Alexis wondered how many things Shadow had in his jacket.

"_What's the procedure in such a case?_" Alexis asked.

"_I`m leaving it to you. It`s your jurisdiction._"

Alexis proceeded to push on Luck`s head, trying to make him fit in the trunk. "Mon crisse de torrieu _of rotten_!"

"What did he say?" Shadow asked.

"_He called us rotten…_" Alexis explained.

"I got that part, but "crisse de torrieu"…?"

"_I almost forgot you learned to speak well French in Acorn. That`s slang from Four-Lakes City!_ It`s swearing," Alexis explained. He couldn`t pull any blackboard to explain him. "_These words began somewhere around the twentieth century on Mobius, when people believed in religion and this kind of thing, and in Four-Lakes, we started using religious words to express our anger._" Alexis was explaining the whole thing all the while trying to keep the muscled walrus in the trunk. "_Sure that religion no more exists, but we still use them and we`re proud of being the only ones who use it since over a millennia._"

"Okay, right…"

"_Well, "__osti__ de rotten" is very rotten,_" Alexis gave as an example. "_So "__osti de câlisse__ de rotten" is even worse. But there`s worse: One day someone called me an __osti de câlisse__ de rotten de __tabarnak__…"_

"Even more rotten than rotten, if I understand well…" Shadow deducted. Alexis was sitting on his trunk`s door, trying to close it, but Luck was pushing it up. He was pushing his luck, to make an easy pun. Alexis got down from the trunk.

"_Wait till I get out of here, you won`t laugh anymore…_"

"_Hush, I`m not done yet…_" Alexis told Luck. Then, to Shadow: "_You can conjugate it too…_"

"Like a verb?"

"_J`vais t`en câlisser une…_", Luck said. (This can`t be really translated, sorry… but it means something like "I`ll fuckin` give you one.")

"_Good example, Luck, "__J`vais t`en câlisser une…__"_ Alexis said. And he slapped Luck. "It can also be "J`vais t`en crisser un"…" And he punched Luck. (This is pretty much the same thing.)

"Okay, got it…" Shadow began. "The more curse words you use in a chain, the heavier the whole swear is."

"Mon tabarnak…" Luck said. (This can`t be translated neither…)

"_Thanks. I was about to forget it; we can also use it as a noun. Like in a __tabarnak__._" And he kicked Luck right in the jaw. "It`s a proper noun. Oh, we got expressions too! Like "_Je __m`en câlisse__"._" (This is translated as "I don`t give a damn") And Alexis shut the trunk`s door right on Luck`s head, knocking him.

"Okay, that`s enough… _if you don`t stop, he`s gonna file a complaint._"

"Je m`en câlisse." And he knocked Luck again with the trunk`s door. Now Luck was mellow, and Alexis had an easier time closing the door, but something was still blocking. "_What the hell? What's happening?_" Shadow tapped Alexis` shoulder, and showed him what was happening. Luck had one of his feet out of the trunk, blocking the door from closing. "_Luck? You foot`s blocking,_" he told the walrus.

"_Ah? Sorry,_" the walrus said, weakened by the many hits he`s got. Finally, Alexis could close the trunk. As they were about to embark in the CheRookie, Shadow commented:

"That was fun to learn, but I hope you`re not talking like that in front of your child."

"Câlisse de tabarnak de ciboire, Jennifer!" Alexis gave as an example.

"…got my answer."

FOUR-LAKES STREET  
MAY 24th, 3250  
2:45 PM

"Are you always driving this way?" Shadow asked, trying his best not to yell. If the trip was in a mountain area, he`d feel like on a rollercoaster.

"_What? Is there any problem? That`s how I`m driving,_" Alexis replied.

"If that`s how you`re gonna drive for the whole investigation, I`d better go everywhere by foot."

"_Do as you want, mister the Ultimate Life Form…_" Alexis said. "_Anyway, why do everyone call you that?_"

"_Long story…_" Shadow said. "_Do you know how old I am?_"

"_I`ll take a wild guess… thirty-something?_"

"_No, physically I`m 17 or 18, but actually, it`s been sixty-three years since my artificial birth._"

"_So you`re some kind of faker, is that so?_"

Shadow growled. "The only one who ever called me like that was Sonic, when he was fifteen. Yes, it`s a, erm… complicated story."

"_Can`t be as bad as what I`ve already lived,_" Alexis said, turning this into some kind of competition.

"_Oh, it`s way worse than that._ How would you feel if you had been lab-created from an African pigmy hedgehog and part of you was made from alien DNA?"

"_Who is the mad person who would do that?_" Alexis yelled.

"And how would you feel if your best friend, who is a human, which you treat almost like a sibling, was to be killed because of your creation?"

"_You`ve got to be kidding me, right?_"

"I`m not," Shadow answered. "Every I told you is true. When G.U.N. understood that I could be dangerous, they tried to eliminate me; but they killed Maria. We dreamt of visiting Earth; what a mistake. Then, later on, as I faced my inner demons…"

"Let me guess: The aliens who created you with their DNA?"

"Yes. Them. Well, I faced the Black Arms, and as you know, I finally defeated Black Doom. But all this couldn`t bring Maria back… After Eggman`s death by the hands of Sonic, I also felt grieved, but the world was safe once and for all, so I had no reason to live anymore. That`s why I settled down with Rouge, and since ten years, I discovered I`m not as "Ultimate" as I thought I was."

"Father Life does that to everyone. I know what I`m talking about," Alexis commented, faintly laughing. "_You got a child, don`t you?_"

"Not really. I got a teenager, but not by procreation; I learned Gerald Robotnik and Black Doom modified my DNA so that I could not have kids. We adopted a fox, and Matt`s 15 and four months old by now. Besides, Rouge prefers it that way. At least, she didn't go through pregnancy. She`s too busy being a G.U.N. agent. And she didn`t get to pass through the painful diaper-changing and night-waking process."

"You`re really lucky to have a loving wife and still be married to her," Alexis told his partner. "But if you`re saying you`re not as ultimate as everyone saw you are… what else makes you say that?"

"Want an alphabetical order or chronological in the order I discovered it? I am an awful cook; I can hardly even talk with my son, I lack self-confidence, I always mess up cleaning the house…"

"Okay, enough," Alexis stopped him. "At least you`re still married…"

"Yes, but I see Rouge once a week, if not less. G.U.N. is over-using her. It`s either that, either she`s cheating on me."

Alexis looked at the highway. He was now lost in his own thoughts. He never thought a hero would have so many problems… compared to what Shadow has lived, Alexis had an easy life.

"_Enough about me. Now what about you, Alex?_"

Alexis noted Shadow spoke in French. Maybe it was some kind of way to encourage him into telling the whole story…

"_I`m no match. Seriously, your story is way worse than mine._"

"_Hey, I just spilled it out. It`s your turn now._"

"_Fine. See, I`m born in the same country than my cousin Antoine. When he was five, I was only two. When Sonic defeated Eggman for the final time, I was twenty and Antoine was twenty-three years old._"

"I _guess that was just to help me understand the chronology," Shadow said."_

"_Yes. Well, you know very well that when Antoine was 5, Dr. Ivo Robotnik attacked Robotropolis. Well, all the kids escaped, and since we were kids, we joined the escape mission. I was lucky enough that my parents could escape with me. Later, my parents learned my uncle had been roboticized, but we kept this secret to Antoine. Hoping to fight against tyranny, we began learning the art of sword fighting. Antoine was way better than me at that, though. And when Antoine went back into Robotropolis, my parents decided it would be safer to live here, in Four-Lakes, because our city is the least dangerous of all._"

"_Yet there`s still murders,_" Shadow commented.

"_Yes, but well, as time went on, I developed my detective skills. I also met my ex-wife Annie when I was sixteen. We had a child the next year. Anyway, I entered the Four-Lakes Police Department as soon as I turned eighteen. I had kept contact with Antoine at that time. At least he could tell them I was worth being part of the FLPD. Well, as time went on, my job occupied more and more of my life, and I was not anymore a caring father, so Annie and I divorced. We`re still living in the same house as spouses, but we`re just no more married._"

"_That`s all?_" Shadow asked. "_No big problem like the one I had? You`re right, my story is far worse._" Then Shadow remembered something hyper important. "_Wait, you still didn`t tell me about the "impulsion" thing!_"

"_This? You don`t wanna know, believe me._" Alexis was looking forward, driving calmly, which was really strange for Shadow. Maybe he was slowing down to keep concentrated on the highway and his story at the same time…

"_Tell me, I no more have secrets to you. It would be unfair._"

"_Fine. But tell anything to Captain Oxen and I swear I`ll quit this case. Anyway, if you tell him, I`ll get fired._"

"_Okay, I`ll keep my mouth shut._"

"_It happened five years ago. It was one of the hardest cases I`ve eve faced. And I was teamed up with another detective. That case was a pain in the butt to solve and we even had to do some illegal things to find the killer. We had been called to the Acorn Kingdom by Antoine, who helped us a lot during the case, and we found out the guy behind all that was also planning to bomb up the whole place. However, the bombs he used were simple, and could explode thanks to a remote control. After we freed some people from artisanal bombs, we fought the guy, and at the end, my partner hid a bomb in the guy`s pockets._"

"_That partner… how was he?_"

"_Worse than you for sure. I hated him, he had too much guts and was always running to troubles. Plus it was impossible to argue with him, he was always right, and he wanted to do everything. He was also super violent, and he didn`t mind going into illegal activities if it helped him reaching his goal. Anyway, at the end of the case, last thing I know, I find the bomb`s remote control on the ground, my partner takes it, and blows the guy up._"

"_He was crazy or what?_" Shadow asked.

"_We were pissed off by the whole thing, yes, but that`s not the worst. Antoine saw that, and ensured my partner would get fired from FLPD. If the killer was dead, there was no way to send him in jail! Antoine decided to lie and told Captain Oxen that I had noting to do on that, so I kept my job. However, since then, my cousin always threatens me to reveal the truth._"

"_No way!_" Shadow said.

"_Now, if we want to protect our jobs and if we want our kids to have something on the dining table, we must keep out jaws shut on that and reveal nothing. Got it?_"

"_Fine. Let`s just pretend we never had that talk and still act toward me as if you hated being partnered with an emo teenager._"

"_It`s okay for me._"

Just then, something rang from Shadow`s pockets. He took out his cellphone and answered.

"_Hello? Shadow?_"

"_Hood? How did you get my number?_"

"_That`s not important, what`s important is that I got some new information. I`d tell you by phone, but the cell phone wouldn`t understand._"

"_I`m not already sure I would understand myself, you`re talking at F1 speed._"

"_Anyway, come back to the FLPD right away!_"

Shadow closed the cell phone.

"_It was Hood? What did he want?_" Alexis asked.

"He wants us to pass by the FLPD."

"_But my daughter has a play at 4 PM!_"

"_Calm down, Alex, it`s just 3 PM by now. We have plenty of time to pass by the coroner`s room first._"

To be continued…

* * *

What do you think of this fully original scene? Tell me if I got something wrong in the chronology. All I used for this was the Sonic Wiki.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

FOUR-LAKES CORONER ROOM

MAY 24TH, 3250

3:30 PM

"_So, Hood… why did you really want to see us?_"

"_Well, I looked in the archives and everything, I Mobiggled Mac Edward, and I found some vital information. Guess what? He is apparently one of the two owners of a hulo team called the Dashers, which were recently sold to Soleanna._"

He had said the whole thing in ten seconds.

"_I found out pretty much everything that we needed to know, and that`s all. It`s the main thing to know about him._"

"Thanks, Hood," Alexis and Shadow said one after the other.

"_There`s just one thing I don`t understand…_" Hood began.

"_What?_"

"…_what is hulo already?_"

Alexis face-palmed. Shadow smirked.

"_You… really don`t know? You haven`t even watched a single game?_" Alexis yelled.

"_Well… no._" Alexis fell on the floor, manga-style. Shadow just lost his cool, and looked at Hood with a look of misunderstanding.

"Come on! _Everyone watches hulo, it`s the national sport!_" the red-and-black hedgehog said.

"_I just couldn`t watch a single game… my job is taking most of my time, I don`t even have time for a relationship. I just have enough time to live._"

"Anyway, want us to explain you how that game works?" Shadow asked.

"_Well, I`m on my coffee break, so go ahead._"

Shadow and Alexis would have pulled down a blackboard if they could.

"_Each hulo team is made of ten players, with usually five players on the field at a time. Imagine it as a mix of hockey, dodgeball, score-based arcade game and soccer,_" Alexis began.

"_Each player bears a score on his team clothes, which shows how many points the player has collected. There is no maximum, but the highest score any player has reached is a hundred,_" Shadow explained. "_Thanks to technology and many discoveries, the points appear automatically on the players` shirts._"

"_The materials are simple. Two soccer goals, two goalkeeper sticks and five balls. The goalkeeper stick is similar to a hockey stick, only with two curved endings shaped into a right angle, instead of one as usually in hockey._"

Hood was taking notes, and sometimes he was taking a break. Was he writing even faster than he was talking? That guy was like Sonic but in everything else than running or what?

"_The field is divided in two halves, one half for one team. There are also five periods, each lasting approximately ten minutes. There is one goal for each team. The aim of the game is that every player collects a lot of points. At the end of each period, the points are added and at the end of the fifth period, the team with the most points is the winner. The highest score ever reached was fourteen hundred._"

"_Now, there are many things a player can do in the game. First off, the player can take on of the balls and throw it to one player on the enemy team`s side. If the player is touched, he is sent to the bench, and that team`s next player on the bench enters the game. Another thing to do is to kick one of the balls in the other side`s goal. A successful throw gives ten points to the player._"

"_The most important role in the game is the goalkeeper`s. He is wielding the two-end stick, and must use it to counter the balls trying to score. However, the goalkeeper is also the weaker link of the gang, as he also has to defend from the balls thrown at him. However, he is not allowed to throw the balls; only catch them with his hands and give them at his teammates._"

"_All the other players must be careful not to get hit by the balls, like in a dodgeball game. Luckily, there is no loss of points, unless any fault is committed. In such a case, points are lost. As an example, if a ball is thrown at the goal and scores, it will not work; the ball has to be kicked._"

Hood began feeling like that sport was really complicated. He took a second sheet to write notes, as if he was a student writing as fast as he could to have enough material to pass his exams.

"_Now, touching a player from the other team is worth two points. Catching the ball before it hits you is worth three points. The goalkeeper is the one who scores the most points, as stopping a ball from hitting him is worth five points, while stopping a kicked ball from reaching the goal is also worth five points. A successful goal is worth ten points, while taking the goalkeeper out is worth five points._"

"_That game is awesome, because it can be played on any field. It can be played on dry land, in a gymnasium, and it can even be played on ice like hockey. Battles between teammates from the teams can`t happen since the players are not allowed to go on the other side of the field. Another cool thing is that girls can play as well, which differs from most team sports which are usually played by male-only teams._"

"_However, the game also requires shirts with digital screen on it, and these shirts are very expensive. That`s why most amateur games, played between friends, just count the number of goals and don`t care about the rest. However, it`s really fun to watch,_" Shadow ended.

"_Wow, just hearing you two talk about it make me want to watch a game. I`ll hack the television here so that I can watch it while working. Thanks, guys._"

"_No problem. Anyway, if you have anything new, my cell phone is never off,_" Alexis told him.

As they went out of the coroner room, they were greeted by Antoine. "_How`s the case going?_" the coyote asked.

"_We got a witness, but we have to cook him a bit more before getting anything from him,_" Shadow answered. The detective hedgehog left, but Antoine grabbed Alexis before he could get out.

"Wee hav tou talke."

"_In French, you know your English suck._"

"_Well, I told Oxen about "it", but I just told him a past case solved by you had not been completely solved. I think he knows what I`m talking about. You better watch out what you`re doing, cousin, or else you can wave your job goodbye._"

"_I know tat too well. Things are getting better with Shadow; maybe he`s not as stuck as I thought he was. We got someone in my car`s trunk, he`s a major suspect as much by his acts as his reactions when we tell him about the case._"

"_A suspect in your trunk?_" Alexis asked. "_Is that what Shadow meant by "cooking the witness"?_"

"_Oh, it`s a tough guy, I think he`ll survive the heat._"

"_Anyway, be careful what you do, because when I`ll tell Captain Oxen about your past mistake, I won`t tell him in English, if you catch my drift. Oh, by the way, King Sonic will come in Station Square for a meeting, and we`ll watch him for the whole trip. Just telling, because I don`t think you care._"

"_Fine. I`ll remember about that. Bye, Ant._"

"_Bye… hey!_"

But Alexis was gone.

Back in Alexis` car, Shadow asked his partner:

"What were you two talking about?"

"Erm… personal affairs."

Alexis turned the key in, and they drove directly to Jen`s school.

JENNIFER`S SCHOOL

MAY 24th, 3250

4:00 PM

Alexis parked the CheRookie on a handicap space. As they came out, Shadow lectured him.

"You can`t park here, this place is for handicap people."

"_I sure can, I`m with you._"

Shadow grumbled. "Very funny. But the witness, he`s still in the trunk!"

"_I know._"

"You can`t let him in the trunk just because your daughter has a play! We gotta get him out!"

"_Why? He has to be cooked a bit more. And then he`ll spill the beans._"

"That`s ridiculous, Alex. Gimme the car keys, I`ll go park your junk somewhere else."

"_Why? It`s perfect here._" And Alexis entered the school, not caring about what his Station Square partner would say.

***

"_Applause our group of E3 who fulfilled our hopes!_" the teacher said in a microphone. A hundred chairs were placed in an auditorium, and many parents were watching the "play", which was actually a representation of ballet dancing. The parents acclaimed the group who just finished their show. The students on stage were humans as well as anthros. Not to mention it was the same in the improvised auditorium. Some years ago, and to avoid anthrocism (racism toward anthros), the governments decided to put anthros in the same classes as humans. This is the best idea they ever had. Apparently G.U.N. decided so, because if the humans learn to live with anthros, they will accept them better. Of course, the students had to get used to this, but it was not so difficult; after all, friendship is not of a particular species.

As the teacher was about to announce the next group, Alexis and Shadow arrived in the room, in another argument.

"_It`s clear that you have no daughter!_"

"_Because you think it`s easier to raise a fifteen years old fox?_"

"_Well you`re not gonna tell me that the asshole in my trunk is more important than our children!_"

"Shut up, Coolette! If there are rules, it`s because there are reasons for these rules to exist."

"_Anyway I no more wanna hear about it, okay? It`s an order!_"

"An order?"

"Yeah." Alexis looked around to find his ex. She waved her hand at him, and the detectives pushed around and reached their seats, just beside Annie. "_Did I miss Jennifer?_"

"_No, you`re right on time,_" Annie answered. On the stage, the teacher was getting slightly impatient, not only because of the dialog said just before, but also because everyone was ready for the next part. Annie looked at Shadow.

"_Oh, he`s Shadow, from Station Square. He`s helping me on a case,_" Alexis explained as he sat at his ex-wife`s left side. Shadow sat at Annie`s right.

"_Oh? Sorry for you,_" Annie told Shadow.

"_Enchanté._"

The teacher coughed in front.

"_Shadow, that hedgehog is my ex wife Annie._"

"_My sympathies,_" Shadow told the pale blue hedgehog beside him. If there was nobody to see him, Alexis would have sent him a death glare.

The teacher coughed again, louder this time. Everyone stopped talking. "_Thanks. So, to close this representation, since we have all your attention, we will end with our best group._"

As the ballet dancers entered the room, the crowd applauded. Alexis couldn`t help but yell at his daughter some word of encouragement. He was also encouraging the other girls, as well as the only boy in the group, which was a blonde fox named Jay. The music began, so were the dancers on the stage. Alexis looked at her daughter, and was repeating the indications she had been working with, as if he was her teacher. Actually, Alexis was moving frequently on his chair, almost doing the same thing than the ballet dancers. We`d swear he had been a ballet dancer himself in the past, a dancer who was fighting against the urge of joining them on stage. As the troop completed a slightly difficult move, Alexis could not hold in a "yes!" Annie almost had to calm him down.

Now Jay was dancing with Jen, doing the choreography almost completely, and Alexis was wondering if the kid really had to put his hands on Jen`s ribbing. "Quit worrying," his ex told him. Shadow was also watching the dance, and could not stop himself from smiling. If there was one thing he learned from being a father, it`s to be softer. Not always look like he`s angry. Alexis pointed to Shadow which one was his daughter, to which Shadow answered that he had guessed it.

The representation`s end was approaching, and the classical music`s too. Now the last moves were being danced with all the grace ballet required, and the grand finale was perfect. Jay in front, and all the girls around him, placed in perfect symmetry, were now waiting for the audience to applause. Which didn`t take long. Alexis stood from his seat, and applauded more than he had ever applauded. "_Awesome! All right! Perfect!_" He also threw one or two compliments to the fox. Alexis, Annie and Shadow were giving a standing ovation, and some parents joined them. Finally, the whole audience was acclaiming the group of girls and the only boy on stage. "_The one in front is mine!_" Alexis said, overwhelmed by pride.

After the girls changed into their regular clothing, Jen joined her parents in the school`s corridor.

"_You were awe-some._" Then, in his daughter`s ear: "_You stole the show._" This made her giggle.

"We have to go now," Shadow reminded his partner.

"_You have to go?_" Jen demanded.

"…_Yes. But I swear I`ll be there for supper. We`ll celebrate your success."_

"_Will your friend be there too?_" she asked, talking about Shadow.

"_Friend? Which friend?_" Alexis asked, not understanding yet what his girl was talking about.

"_She meant your employee,_" Annie explained. "_Shadow, you don`t mind coming for supper with us?_"

"_Um… yes, why not?_"

"Fantastic! _So, see you later!_"

As Shadow was leaving the school, Alexis caught up to him. "_Shadow, if you don`t want to come for dinner, if you prefer to get some rest at the hotel, I`d understand._"

"_No, actually, I don`t mind._"

"_No, seriously, you`d better stay at the hotel._"

"_I had heard that Four-Lakers were very welcoming and accepting, but I never thought that it was that much._" Then, taking his cell phone out of his jacket: "Carta left me a message!" He read it.

"_Then why don`t you go for dinner with her instead?_" Alexis suggested.

Shadow read the message and apparently, it was not good. But Shadow caught up to Alex. As they came out of the school, the two saw Alexis` CheRookie being towed away.

"_My car! MY CAR!_"

"Told you so…" Shadow said. But Alexis didn`t listen and instead ran after the tow truck. Shadow sighed, and ran to him. "Police! Freeze!" But the car didn`t stop. "FREEZE!" The tow truck finally stopped, much to Alexis` luck.

"_Hey, it worked! Thanks, Shad,_" Alexis said. "_We could have been in trouble._" But as the pair walked to the car…

BOOM!

The car`s trunk exploded all of a sudden, as if there was a bomb in there. The cops backed, only to see the old CheRookie, in flames, with the trunk completely destroyed. As for the anthro inside it, no one knew exactly what happened.

"The suspect!" Shadow yelled.

"_My car!_" Alexis yelled.

"There`s no way we`ll explain this to our superiors!"

"_For now… we explain nothing._"

Just then another thing popped in the car.

"What? Are you mad? The suspect died in your car trunk! We MUST report this!"

"_You`re the one who`s crazy! How do you think YOUR superior will act toward your negligence?_"

"MY NEGLIGENCE? I told you I could bring it back to the police department, but you just really wanted to show off that piece of junk with the suspect still in it!"

"Câlisse! _If you like your freaking procedures that much, why didn`t you stay and watched it instead of trying to get a free meal as well as flirting with my ex-wife? In front of my daughter, nonetheless?_"

"That`s it, you`re definitely mad. I`m going back. I`ll write a full report on the whole thing and explain the whole situation. And I don`t care what you`re gonna do, but you`re not gonna make me lose my job at the same time as you," Shadow said in an angry tone.

"_Well, it`s too late, because you`re already in the shit over your head! If we don`t wanna lose our job, and if we want our kids to have something to eat on the table at least three times a day, we gotta shut our mouths off and find out who`s the one behind the whole thing!_ It`s the only way out."

Shadow evaluated the situation. "Osti de câlisse de ciboire de tabarnak de sacrament!"

Alexis looked at his partner. "_He really got them well,_" he thought. "_Twenty-four hours. If in one day we have nothing to explain it, I`m gonna explain everything,_" he dealed.

"_Fine. No more, no less._"

And the cops looked behind them; a group of Four-Lakers had seen the whole thing.

"_Well, at least the case is moving on… we know it was not him,_" Alexis said, trying to reassure.

To be continued…

* * *

Author`s notes: First off, when I`ll have 60 minutes done, I`ll slow down. However, don`t fear it will stop; It`s my first Sonic fanfiction, and I`m not gonna stop it! Second, I`ll also slow down because of, erm... well, I begin college the 21st. I`ll go get my schedule the 18th, and I`ll make a writing plan with it.

Finally... rate and review!


	8. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own some characters.

* * *

Chapter 7

ALEXIS`S HOUSE

MAY 24TH, 3250

7:30 PM

"_It was delicious,_" Shadow greeted as soon as he gulped down the last bite on his plate. Alexis had finally agreed for him to be there. "_I really liked your salmon à la Acorn. Usually I prepare it similarly, but I never do so well._"

"_You are cooking?_" Annie asked the black and red hedgehog.

"_Well, a bit, but I`m not great._"

"_You are just like Alexis; his scrambled eggs set apart, he`s not much useful in the kitchen…_"

"_Well, there was another room where you found me quite useful…_" Alexis told his ex. This made Jen laugh. She knew what he meant, as everyone else, but it was just funny to hear.

"_Still, it`s quite rare to see a divorced coupe who still lives together…_" Shadow remarked. "_In the same house, as a normal family…_"

The pale blue hedgehog laughed nervously. "_Normal… The word is too long as of now._"

The ever-curious Jennifer then asked Shadow: "_Are you divorced too?_" On this, Shadow could only laugh a bit. Jen`s mother just said her name in a fashion meaning "that`s not the type of question to ask." But Shadow simply answered. "_Well, Jen, I`m not divorced, but it`s almost as if._"

Alexis knew what Shadow meant, but to let his family know, he asked: "_Why are you saying that?_"

Shadow sighed. "_Well, my wife, Rouge the bat, was a G.U.N. agent thirteen years ago, and she still is by now. It`s thanks to her intervention that I could become a detective. Well, two years ago she completed a very long mission, and so she was graded to a higher rank. When at first her missions were already dangerous and difficult, now they are even more dangerous and difficult. Sadly, now, not only I always fear she`s dead, but I also fear she might be cheating on me. We never know what can happen, and I would hate having to raise my teenager alone…_"

"_You`re kidding, right? It can`t be so dangerous,_" Alexis said.

"_I`m not. I bet you never heard of all the adventures I lived ten to thirteen years ago. Well now she`s fighting in that kind of danger. That also means she meets new people…_"

"_It must be hard for you,_" Annie said.

"_What is the adventures you`re talking about?_" Jen asked.

"_I was pitted against Sonic the Hedgehog, Knuckles the Echidna, Tails the Fox, and their friends, while I was myself trying to find out what I had been made for. Finally, I always helped them save the world as we know it now, which is not a bad thing. When peace came back, I could have written books, but adventure-less life looked boring to me. Did I mention Amy was really a pain to endure?_"

This made the whole Depardieu Coolette family laugh. They didn`t know what happened with Amy, but it is said that she also lives in Knothole, and is one of King Sonic`s most dedicated servants. She holds a slight grudge for Sally, but it`s minor.

"_Well, it`s about time we go to sleep…_" Alexis began.

"_It`s not late, it`s just seven thirty!_" his daughter reminded.

"_I meant, Shadow and I,_" Alexis explained. "_We have a rough day tomorrow._"

"He`s right," Shadow admitted. "I think I should go."

"_Why don`t you stay here for the night?_" Annie suggested. The suggestion surprised Shadow for a second.

"_I wouldn`t want to abuse of your generosity…_" Shadow began.

"_I insist. Besides, you still can go sleep in the friend room, on the first floor,_" Annie suggested

"_Come on, Annie, you know it`s a mess up there,_" Alexis argued.

"_I can let him sleep in my room on ground floor!_" Jen suggested. "_I`ll sleep in the friend room._"

"_That`s it!_" Annie said in a good tone. "_Everything`s decided._" Alexis, however, wasn`t too happy about that.

LUCK`S HOUSE

MAY 25TH, 3250

8:00 AM

The detectives arrived right in front of Luck`s house. Shadow took his cell phone out and dialed a number. Alexis was walking around, Shadow waited for an answer.

"Carta`s not answering," Shadow said.

"_What are the guys doing with their freaking papers?_" Alexis yelled. He was no more walking aimlessly, he was running aimlessly.

"Has your parents ever given you Ritalin as a child?"

"No, they gave me Vitalin. Duh," Alexis said jokingly.

"_Think about something else,_" Shadow told his partner. "_Your daughter is loveable._"

"_Yeah, Annie and I are lucky._ She`s a great child.

"You`re right all the way. _Four-Lakes women are… special. I can`t deny it._" Al;exis turned to him.

"_You talking about my ex?_"

"_Not only her. Carta too was great_. They`re beauties and they`re great to talk with."

Alexis scratched the back of his left ear.

"_Or it`s just Station Square women who are cold. Whatever you do, I enter._" And the coyote walked to the front door of Luck`s suburban house.

"Depardieu Coolette, we need a warrant!"

"Je m`en câlisse."

"Un-Coolette! Come on!"

"Je m`en câlisse, je m`en câlisse!" Alexis yelled as Shadow was now joining him near the door, on which was a sign saying "_warning: dangerous dog_". Alexis tried looking in the house, but it was as dark as a tunnel in there. The only way to see was to enter. Alexis broke the glass door, and moved his hand inside after putting the shards away. He reached for the locket, which he unlocked, and entered.

"Super," Shadow commented behind him. "Now we can`t use the evidence anymore." But Alexis just entered the house. "Imbecile," Shadow said.

Alexis entered in another room, and he saw something really weird. "_Shadow, come here!_"

"I don`t enter until I get a warrant!" Shadow reminded him.

"Ah, come on! _I already broke the glass, so…_" But Shadow didn't enter. "…_And I think I saw a dead body. Or someone in danger._" Shadow entered right away, but muttered a small "damnit". Shadow entered and feared the worst, and as soon as he got in the same room as Alexis, the French cop burst near him with a mask on. "Ha!" This scared off Shadow, who lost his cool for a second, until he saw the masked detective laugh. Alexis put away the mask.

"Can`t you keep your hands off all the evidence?" Shadow asked.

"_Just to see your face, it was worth it!_" the coyote replied.

Shadow turned on the lights. What they saw was really weird. A wall was covered with masks of some sort, and right in the middle of the room, there was a chair, on which tattooist equipment was placed. The tattoo gun was buzzing once every ten seconds.

"What a sicko," Alexis whispered. They then looked behind the chair; news from nearly every paper was carefully placed on the wall. On news we could see Mac Edward, Luck and another rich man. Luck was placed in the middle, and the title of the article was "I`m Proud to be part of the Lakers". But that was not the strangest… a dart had been thrown exactly on Edward`s forehead on the picture.

"_I understand why I remembered about Luck…_" Alexis began. "_He was a goalie for the Lakers, our hulo team, five years ago. He got suspended a year later after a scandal. He was doing drugs._"

"At least it explains the tattoo…"

"_You think he did that because of hulo or because of dope?_"

"Both I guess."

Another paper showed Michael Goaler, the second owner of Four-Lakes` Lakers, under a title saying "Goaler Sells the Lakers to Soleanna". However, there were three darts on Goaler`s face.

"_Look, he`s the bad*ss who sold the Lakers to Soleanna._"

"But the next year they won the cup, haven`t they?" Shadow asked. Alexis grimaced to him.

Shadow took out his camera and took pictures of the newspapers. Alexis turned ninety degrees and saw a desk on which many figurines of hulo players with bobbling heads were placed. Alexis tapped the floor with his foot, and the bobbling heads began moving. After spending a few seconds looking at the figurines, he decided he had seen enough for now.

"_I`ll let you finish your little project. I`m going down._" Alexis found the staircase and went down, slowly. Shadow, on his side, was done taking pictures of the newspapers and the tattooist equipment, and decided to go take a look on the first floor. As the hedgehog was halfway in the stairs, he heard some music coming from the bedroom.

On his side, Alexis, in the darkness, saw a locket with a code. The coyote smashed the door open, and he saw something big behind: A complete marijuana grow-op, slowly growing thanks to UV lights. Alexis feared there would be somebody who would wait for him in the dark, but he was alone.

Shadow opened the bedroom door. The music was coming from a walkie-talkie in the bedroom. But that was not the worst; a body was attached to the bed thanks to handcuffs. "Alex! Goaler`s here!"

"_Martin! Come here!_" Alexis walked between the plants. "Jackpot."

Shadow approached the body and put his hand where the heart is. It was not beating. He dialed on his cell phone. "Detective Shadow the hedgehog here. We found a dead body in Luck`s house.

Alexis smelled the plant. He had already seen them. After all, many marijuana plants are taken by the police each year. He knew what it smelled before it was smoked, but he never tried it, luckily.

Shadow noticed something on the body`s forehead. There was a tattoo of the Soleanna flag symbol (which are waves), with "58leanna" written below. He took a final picture of the body and prepared to leave the first floor.

Alexis, on his side, was still walking between the plants, waiting for Shadow to come and see what he discovered. However, he walked on a rope extended near the floor. As soon as he walked on it, the door closed itself, and Alexis got stuck in the room. Just then the UV lights went off, and a little something right beside the door clicked, and it set the whole plantation on fire… on the shock, all the windows exploded, including the ones on the first floor. Shadow wondered What Alexis had done again. The whole grow-op went in flames. Alexis tried to protect himself from the flames.

"Alex!" Shadow said, rushing in the staircase. Just then he saw smoke coming from below. "What did he do again?" Shadow rushed to take the body of Goaler, and as soon as the corpse was freed from its handcuffs, Shadow tried to lift it and take it down the stairs.

Alexis looked around the now burning grow-op. He saw an old, ceramic bath with a few holes in it. He threw the stuff in it away, spun it upside down and hid below, like a turtle. What was going to happen now? They`ll know only if they can get out of there alive.

To be continued…

* * *

Author`s notes: I had a few problems completing this chapter. because I wanted it to go beyond two thouand words. Well, now it`s done. I also end it on my first cliffhanger.

I also planned some non-OCs would appear in the story. Rouge will be mentioned in some more scenes, while Son... er, King Sonic will have a minor role. Maybe some other characters will appear as well. But this, I can`t tell yet. Maybe some will be just in a cameo. Who knows? I don`t know neither, it`ll come in time when I`ll write it.


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don`t own Shadow, nor Rouge, nor Antoine, but I own about ten-fifteen OCs just in that fanfiction. Which is a lot...

* * *

Chapter 8

"Alex!" Shadow said, rushing in the staircase. Just then he saw smoke coming from below. "What did he do again?" Shadow rushed to take the body of Goaler, and as soon as the corpse was freed from its handcuffs, Shadow tried to lift it and take it down the stairs.

Alexis looked around the now burning grow-op. He saw an old, ceramic bath with a few holes in it. He threw the stuff that was in it away, spun it upside down and hid below, like a turtle. He was walking blind on all fours. "_Shadow! What's he doing? Taking pictures of the fire or what?_" Alexis, who couldn`t see well where he was going, knocked on some nearby garbage. He knocked his head on the side of the bath because of that. "Ayoye!" A few swears escaped his mouth. He moved right, only to knock one of the plantations. "_Why am I always the one in the shit?_" Alexis hit the other plantation, which fell on the bath. Alexis moved around, only seeing by the three holes on the bath`s side. "_As soon as I get out of here I find a desk job._" Alexis hit another wall. It was really difficult to see where he was going. And this turtle shell-like bath didn`t help. Alexis looked through a hole on the side of the bath. He saw the code-locked door. If he could shoot that thing, he would be able to get away!

Shadow, on the first floor, was now surrounded by smoke. He used his sole physical force to lift the body of Michael Goaler. "Alex! Help!"

But Alexis was in other problems. He took his revolver out and passed it by the hole on the side of the bath he was hiding under. He aimed for the coded lock. He shot, but the bullet passed aside. However, the gun knocked the bath, and the resonance sound under it caused a terrible headache to Alexis. "Ouch…"

Shadow, holding the corpse the best he could, tried to advance in the staircase. However, in the smoke, there was now a strange smell. "What the fuck is that odor?" But he went down the stairs the best he could. However, Goaler was too heavy. He did his best and went down some stairs. The smell of the smoke was however weird. Shadow had no idea what it was. Unable to continue, Shadow placed the body halfway down the stairs.

Alexis really wanted to get out of this burning hell, so he prepared to shoot again. Passing the revolver through the hole, he shot again, and again, and again, only missing each time. But the headache was getting worse with each resonance. Alexis had enough. He lifted the bath off, came out and broke the door leading to the staircase. It was jus about time, as a small part of the ceiling was about to fall down on him.

Alexis reached Shadow in the staircase leading to the first floor. "Alex! Get Goaler out of here!"

"_Forget about it,_" Alexis replied.

"Get him out!"

"_No, come with me._" Alexis helped Shadow go down the stairs and reach the ground floor. They rushed out from the front door. Alexis made Shadow sit in the grass. "Sit down. You`re okay?" Shadow nodded. Alexis went inside the house, hoping to go get the body, but a final explosion occurred inside and pushed Alexis back outside. Understanding they could do nothing, Alexis went back to Shadow. They walked to the street. The now burning house could crumble anytime.

Shadow took out an inhalator out of his pockets, like the ones asthmatics use as medicaments. "_Hand it to me…_" Alexis said.

"But it`s my inhalator!" Alexis took a puff of it. Oh well.

"_I`m feeling weird all of a sudden…_" Alexis began.

"Yeah, me too…" Shadow and Alexis looked back inside the house. It was now really burning in there. There were flames everywhere. Too bad for the corpse. Alexis and Shadow looked at each other. A smile appeared on their faces. And they began laughing, more than they ever laughed. They were floating high, and probably nothing could pull them down… as long as the marijuana had effect. But this was already far away in their souvenirs. They had forgotten.

FOUR-LAKES POLICE DEPARTMENT

MAY 25th, 3250

9:30 AM

Nobody likes to be lectured… but apparently, Alexis and Shadow liked it. Or at least, the marijuana was making them like it. Captain Oxen chained French swear after French swear, probably the longest chain he has ever said.

"Câlisse d`osti de sacrament de ciboire de crisse d`osti de viarge de tabarnak de simonak de bâtard!" (Believe me, you don`t wanna know what this means)

Alexis laughed again. He was breathless from laughing. "This isn't good, is it?" Shadow asked. Alexis shook the head.

"Calvaire_,__ Alex_!" Captain Oxen yelled. "_You came in without the fucking warrant! You leave a suspect in your car trunk, and all that`s left you can put it in a paper bag! You think it`s normal?!_"

"_Calm down… there`s no reason to be so angry…_" Alexis said between two laughs. "_His file was longer than your arm… well now we can store him in without any problem._"

"_Store him in?_" Shadow asked, laughing. This made Alexis laugh even louder. But Oxen didn`t find it funny.

"_We had to take him out with a spatula! You blew the whole place and you forgot the victim in!_"

"_Er… I lost my car too…_"

"_DON`T INTERRUPT ME WHEN I`M TALKING, GOT IT?_" Captain Oxen yelled loud enough that people in Soleanna might hear him.

"_Indeed, Captain… it`s all my bad,_" Shadow began. Oxen chuckled. "_Yes, I`m the one who entered. I thought I had seen someone in danger."_ Captain Oxen listened to Shadow`s version. "_There was someone, but not the one I thought. And it was in danger… but not today_." Alexis laughed even more. "It`s close enough, no?"

Just then, on the phone, someone entered the conversation. "Captain McKaz… you got my massage?" Shadow chuckled. It was just too stupid. "About what your crazy cop do?"

"Yes."

"He burn down a houze. He bloo up… de witeness!"

"Shadow! Is that true?" Claw asked.

"Well, er… considering the whole situation, and also what we`ve been through, er… would you mind repeating the question, please?" Shadow asked. Alexis chuckled.

"Wait-e-ness! Waitness!" Oxen reminded him in far from great English.

"No, I got an alibi…" Shadow began. "I was at Alexis` daughter`s ballet recital." The cops couldn`t help but laugh, while Captain Oxen was in a blacker anger than ever.

"What?" The French captain asked. Alexis posed as a ballet dancer, just to explain the whole situation.

"Shadow come back in Station Square right now, we`ll arrange the whole thing later." Captain Claw was obviously in fury too. "It`s no more our business, get back home!"

"_Anyway, I`ll be way better if I don`t have a tourist to look for and guide around,_" Alexis said.

"Sir, let me fix all that…" Shadow began. The cops were no more laughing. "I`ve spent like half of all the time watching out for that excited Rambo on steroids… I can fix this." Just hearing how Shadow was calling him, Alexis chuckled more.

"Vos gueules! Vos gueules! VOS GUEULES!" Captain Oxen yelled. (It means "shut up", but worse)

"Ayoye…" was all Alexis could mutter. (It`s like your "Ouch")

"And you," Captain Oxen began. "My stoopid squared-head of an Ainglish imo headgehogue… Ass of now, y`er offe de suit-case! OFFE THE SUIT-CASE!"

Shadow was trying his best not to laugh at this pathetic English. Ya go bak two Staycion Squouare. That`s hit, that`s oll. Don coll oss, will coll you!"

Shadow was reall trying his best not to laugh, but it was too difficult. That English was pathetic.

"_It`s finished! FINISHED!_"

Now Alexis too had problems not to laugh. They were still high, no matter how much Captain Oxen was trying to get them back down. Maybe a slap would help, but Oxen wasn`t the guy who acts. He was more the kind who yells. The barking dogs don't bite.

"And you, Alexis… Oll I wante frome you… _Is to send that square-head of a hedgehog back to the airport and back to Station Square. That`s your fucking job today!_"

"_Come on, Cap`n…_" Alexis began.

"_OUT! Get out of my office!_ Gait oute! Gait oute off herre!"

And the cops left the office. As soon as they were out, they began laughing again.

FOUR-LAKES POLICE DEPARTMENT

MAY 25TH, 3250

11:00 AM

Alexis and Shadow no more had the effects of the marijuana… luckily. They were high long enough. Now they were downer than down. Alexis was desperately trying to get a snack from a machine while Shadow had taken a coffee from the other machine, which worked perfectly.

"_Come on, spit the goddamn Smarties!_" He yelled.

Shadow took a sip out of his coffee. "All I can say is that it`s been an education for me." Shadow took a break. "But two victims, all from Four-Lakes… the suspect, dead, a Four-Laker as well… a killer, which I suppose is a Four-Laker as well… I`ve got nothing to do on that case. Tell Annie I`ll email her once in a while."

Alexis looked at his past partner. "_What the hell with Annie? You`ve seen her only once!_"

Shadow groaned. "Four-Lakers are really all the same. There`s a lunatic killing hulo-related people about a team that no more exists, and look at how you act just when I mention the name of your ex." Shadow took another sip of his coffee. "What`s your city`s motto already? Oh yeah, right. "_I regret nothing_". You guys live in the past, get over it."

Alexis turned back to the machine. The Smarties still weren`t coming out. He punched the machine, hoping the treat would go down. Or maybe he hit the machine because he wanted to punch Shadow instead…

"_At least, we still have our own lives. All you guys got is attack over attack by bad guys, like thirteen years ago. And because of all that, your wife is almost always gone now…_"

"_Hem hem…_" someone said. Alexis recognized the voice.

"Antoine."

"_Yes, it is I. Antoine D`Coolette, your cousin. We have to talk. And with you too, Shadow._"

"_Urk… I got nothing to do on that case anymore. I`ll just erase yesterday from my memory._"

"_Yeah, right,_" The Acorn swordsman said. "_You know, after everything that happened yesterday and this morning, I am at one meter from firing you two at the same time?_"

"_You wouldn`t do that!_" Shadow screamed.

"_Yes I can. If I add everything from this case to the case five years ago…_"

"_No way,_" Alexis said, not believing it.

"…_If I do that, it won't be long that your locker`s gonna be empty and you`ll need to find a desk job. If you can give me only one reason not to fire you…"_

Alexis thought about it. _"…Fine, I got one. I`ll hide until things get back to normal. Get me off the case, I don`t mind, but don`t fire me. I`ll leave with Shadow for Station Square, and I`ll wait there for some time, maybe a day or two._"

"_You swear you won`t try to solve the case?_" Antoine asked.

"_I swear._"

Antoine also thought of that deal. "_I`ll think about it. I can`t tell you that I will not fire you, but if you try to get back on that case and hear of it, you better buy a tie because you`re gonna need it. Anyway, I`m putting the Chaotix on the case. If you get in their way, they will tell me everything._"

And Antoine left the place. Luckily, just then, a human taxi driver, an afro-Mobian probably due to his black skin, arrived. "Shadow the hedgehog?"

"Yes?"

"I am the driver who`ll bring you to the airport."

"Wait for me, I`m coming," Alexis said. After Shadow and the cab driver went down the stairs, Alexis took his gun out and aimed for the treat machine, but some of his fellow cops saw him doing and stopped him. "Bye guys, see you soon," the French detective said. And Alexis left without any Smarties to munch on.

* * *

Author`s notes: A shorter chapter again, but this one is some kind of transition... because I got half the movie done by now! I also imagined everything that was not part of the original movie. Antoine`s appearances are not from the movie, as an example.

P.S. Anyone noticed the desk job thing is a running gag?


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

STATION SQUARE  
MAY 26th, 3250  
8:00 AM

Shadow was assigned a case as soon as he arrived. As for Alexis… he rented a car in Station Square so that he could go around the city without any problem. Shadow was kind enough to hand him the friend room. Alexis was really trying his best not to help Shadow. Besides, Alexis was there now, so Shadow no more needed the help of Janet to take care of the house. And there was someone home when Matt was back from school.

Shadow arrived on the crime scene. On the radio, the host was ranting again about the poor condition of Four-Lakes hulo teams. The body of the victim was hidden under a cloth. A Station Square cop saw Shadow arriving, and waved his hand to tell him to come here.

Shadow arrived near the cop. The police officer removed the cloth from the victim`s head. "Oh no…" Shadow said.

"You recognize her?" the cop asked.

"No… but I recognize the lunatic who would have done that."

The victim had an ice skate through the head. Shadow knew it could only be the hulo killer, because sometimes hulo is played on ice, which adds a new dimension to the game.

"Shadow!" Someone yelled far away. The hedgehog recognized the voice right away.

"Hey, where do you think you`re going?" An anthro cop near Alexis stopped the French cop.

"_Don`t ya dare touching me,_" Alexis warned the cap-wearing English cop.

Shadow saw Alexis coming. "I hope I`m dreaming…"

"I`m a cop!" Alexis told the English cop, showing his badge.

"You can`t pass unless you have a warrant then."

"I know the detective there… _It`s my pal! Hey, Shad! Hey! Tell the cap guy!_"

"Let him pass," Shadow said. "If there`s a third victim, I`ll need his help once again…" he thought. "But I still hate having to work with him."

"Okay, you can go," the cap cop said.

"It`s okay, Shad works for me," Alex said before walking toward Shadow and the victim. He greeted some cops. "_Hello,_ hi! _How`s it doing?" _Alexis saw a woman cop about his age, a bunny, who was fiddling with a car ornament, and Alexis could not help but say "Hello…" in a seductive manner.

Shadow turned to the cop who showed him the victim. "He`s a Four-Laker."

The other cop understood everything and just replied "ah, okay."

"Missed me?" Alexis said, as soon as he reached Shadow. The Ultimate Life Form just pointed the hidden corpse so that the lower police officer removes the cloth. Alexis saw the ice skate having harmed the woman, and could not keep a "Tabarnak…" from escaping. "_Well, he`s got a good skate shot, eh?_"

Shadow didn`t understand what it meant. "French expression. It usually means he`s fast on his skates, but here it`s another way of saying it." Then, taking another look at the corpse: "_You know who it is,_ right?"

"Patina Glaceina," Shadow answered.

"_Yep. First woman to be agent of the league. Her best client was the first choice for the Lakers, seven years ago. He didn`t want to sign for his team to be sold to Sol Kingdom, everybody thought it was him, but his parents refused. She wanted him to go, and it went in Court, where she won. He ended up in Sol, the place Blaze the Cat leads since what, nine years?_"

"Yes… Why, of course! Patina deserved to die! Not only she sold one of the best players ever, but to another universe too. I guess some people still haven`t come over the great Language War…"

In the history of Mobius, maybe a hundred years before the Great War, a civil war occurred between Station Square (which back then was a village, not a city) and Four-Lakes (which was also a village), and that war was all about language. In the end, Station Square won it, but the governments decided that in the end, Four-Lakes still could have its freedom of language. Yet again, some Four-Lakers hate Station Square for what happened over a hundred years ago.

"By the way, shouldn`t you be speaking English here?" Shadow pointed out.

"Where`s the tattoo this time?" Alexis asked with irony in the voice. Shadow lifted the skirt. The tattoo was placed on the victim`s butt. That killer was gone a bit too far in placing the tattoo there.

The tattoo showed a glowing Sol Emerald with something written below it. "I 3 _OL K_NG_OM".

"Who`s next? The client?" Alexis asked.

"No, he`s safe. He`s still in Sol Kingdom, in a hospital. When he learned of what happened with Patina, he fell and suffered a concussion."

"What, again?" Alexis asked.

"Hold up her skirt," Shadow said, taking out his camera.

"Huh?" Alexis said.

"Hold up her skirt, gotta take a picture of the tattoo," Shadow explained. "You should be good at that."

"What, holding her skirt?" Alexis asked. Shadow nodded, as Alexis held up the skirt. Shadow took a single picture of the tattoo. Alexis looked away. Maybe she just wasn`t his type of girl. Maybe she was too old. Or maybe she was too dead right now.

STATION SQUARE POLICE DEPARTMENT  
MAY 26th, 3250  
9:00 AM

"So, let`s see what we got," Shadow said. "Mac Edward screwed Luck for illegal drug use, so he is killed and is tattooed the Four-Lakes symbol with two scales on either side. Goaler sold a team to Soleanna, so he gets a tattoo of Soleanna`s symbol with the name written on it. But the 58 instead of SO is probably a player number."

"_Yes, the number of Glaceina`s star player. So the tattoos, since the beginning, are not just a signature; it also explains who the next victim will be,_" Alexis deducted.

"And her tattoo shows "I 3 Sol Kingdom", but with letters missing. The S, the I, and the D. Also, why has he written the heart as a smiley?"

"The best player in the world. Sid Great-Sky."

"You mean… the "Master of 500?"" Shadow asked. When Alexis and Shadow explained the rules of hulo to Hood, they said the highest number a player could reach in a period was a hundred points. Sid Great-Sky is the only player to date who`s ever reached 500 points. That`s what lead his team to victory, scoring the highest score ever reached, 1400 points. Usually, it is very difficult to even reach 50 points in a period, so imagine reaching a hundred, five times in a row! This, thanks to changing players after some were touched by balls of course.

"Sid… or the one who sold him," Alex ended.

The one who sold Sid to one of the minor Acorn teams was no one else than a guest at that evening`s talk-show all about hulo, Smash the Dash. "Damn," the two said in unison.

STATION SQUARE – HCN CENTER  
MAY 26th, 3250  
8:00 PM

The host, Lanney Waitlong, was doing his show.

"This situation is impossible to live with. It`s not bad enough that Four-Lakes` Critters are leading on one game over our team for these series, but also, my guest for tonight, Mr. Halder, isn't there. Why? Because someone crazy has spent this week`s free time killing people of the hulo community. And why…"

Shadow and Alexis were watching the show. "I saw Halder`s limousine in the parking; that means he isn't far."

"Did you tell the security?" Alexis asked.

"If they see anything suspect, they`ll call on my cell phone."

But they were stopped from talking by a woman, the director. "Hush," was all she said. The cops stopped talking and listened to Lanney.

"…and don`t let me go and talk about all those people who want fight to become regular in hulo, because I`ll go on a monolog why it`s so entertaining and required! I say we go after the ones who want hulo to look like golf! And while we`re at it, why not suggest girl-only teams, eh? Maybe one of them will have a wardrobe accident for the fun of us males who just love to see feminine parts! Sure that will end in a scandal, but who cares? It would change nothing, girl-only teams, after all the Critters only make the playoffs once every three years!"

Alexis began feeling like that host was too loud-mouthed and insulting toward his city.

"What?" Lanney said. The director was showing him a carton with something written on it. "Unbelievable. The producer is now asking me to stretch time, because our special guest, Mr. Halder, who`s now as much here as there is talent in Four-Lakes, which means he`s not there yet or at all, and which I wanted to interview since over seven years as of why he sold Mister 500, Sid Great-Sky, to a cheap Acorn team!"

Now that guy wasn`t stretching time, but he sure was stretching his sentences. Has he ever head of a break at the end of a sentence? He was not like Hood; he was taking his time. But he just never stopped talking.

"Apparently, that guy Halder is in danger. Oh, it`s too bad. And there are two cops there, who just don`t want me or anyone else to talk here about that lunatic. Cameras, let the audience have a look at them. Hey guys, how ya doin`?" Waitlong didn't even take time for an answer and continued his monolog, while Alexis hid his face for as long as the cameras were on him.

"So if any of you, in front of your screen, have any comment on the whole thing, and wanna spill it out for everyone to hear, just call here, and tell me whatever you want to know on the… tattoo killer."

"What?" was all Shadow could say. Just then, the show went on a commercial break.

"And cut!" the producer said. "90 seconds. Makeup! Makeup!"

Shadow approached Lanney Waitlong as an army of designers were around him, erasing any details that might hint at the host`s real age or physical defects. "Mister Waitlong, I`m sure you know how to do your job…"

"So don`t tell me how to do it, that`s all," the host answered.

"…but you can`t talk about the killer on air. If we provoke him, maybe he`ll kill Halder. And if we nickname him the tattoo killer, it`s giving him a name and some publicity. It's exactly what he wants."

"Okay, you`ve never been a host, do you?" Waitlong asked. "I can talk about anything I want on the air, because I have a hell of a lot of time to fill. Anyone can get that emo out of the cameras?"

Shadow understood Lanney was talking about him, so he stepped away. "Why everyone keeps calling me an emo?" Shadow thought. "Haven`t I changed since thirteen years?" The hedgehog, offended, came back to Alexis.

"Where`s my guest?" Lanney asked the director.

"Find him a guest!" the director yelled, until she had an idea.

***

For one of their first time in front of the cameras, Shadow and Alexis were…. stressed. Wait, that`s not the word. They were forty thousand times more stressed than just stressed.

"Welcome back, everyone. Tonight we have two very special guests who might inform us better on the now famed tattoo killer. From Station Square, detective Shadow, and from Four-Lakes, detective Alexiss Depa… deplar… parde… Dicaprio… uh… anyway, one of those French names I always mess up like I just did. So, are you getting any close of finding that asshole?"

"Well, Lanney, we can`t really say as of now that he`s an asshole. For what we know, he works very fast, and we don`t want to ring the alarm to anyone related to hulo, but we think it would be better if they were… careful," Shadow explained.

"Careful, huh? What do you mean exactly?"

"Well, to respond to your question, Lanney…" Alexis began. "The best way to be prudent would be to change your habitub…"

"Habitube?" Lanney asked, not understanding. Or maybe he was just fooling around with Alexis` good-but-not-perfect English.

"Habits, Lanney. Habits," Shadow corrected. "Good point, Alex. The killer seems to know the habits of his victims, and uses this knowledge to get them and kill them. That`s why it would be better to change your routine, if you…"

"Yeah, right," Lanney Waitlong cut him off. "The real question is: what is a French cop doing here? Isn`t the case difficult enough for you?"

"_Keep up with your stupid comments and your ugly purple tie`s gonna end up down your throat,_" Alexis said in French to make sure Lanney wouldn`t understand.

"Come again?" Lanney asked.

"He said you were well-dressed," Shadow said.

"Thanks, but if you`re trying to flirt, I`m not that kind," the host answered.

"That`s not what I said. I said that if you keep doing offensive comment about my city, you`ll regret those ties."

"He wants a piece of me?" Lanney asked.

"_You trying to flirt with me?_" Alexis asked.

Their argument got interrupted by the director, who yelled there was someone on the line.

"Okay, so we finally have a call, and that person has a comment or some information." He opens the line, for the whole studio to hear. "What's your name?"

"**...tattoo killer.**"

"Haw haw haw… very funny," Lanney said. "But we don`t have time for preschooler jokes."

"**You have a problem with my quest, Lan? You really think you could do better? Think I`m an asshole?**"

"I not only think you`re an asshole but I also think you`re a faker."

"**Shut that mouth up! Halder`s being tattooed as we`re talking.**"

"Let us talk to him!" Shadow said.

"**Sorry, but he`s unable to talk as of now. He was moving too much and it was impossible to make a nice tattoo…**" The tattoo killer took a break. "_**By the way… sorry for your CheRookie, Alexis.**_" He had said that part in French. Luckily Lanney didn't understand that one.

"Sir, we`re gonna hang up now, but we can give you a number from which you can reach us…"

"**Don`t you fucking hang up on me! **_**I know your names and your faces.**__**So don`t worry. If I want to talk to you…**_** I`ll find a way. I`ll find you.**"

"Hang up the phone," Alexis ordered.

"It`s not my intention," Waitlong replied.

"**Either you are with me…**"

Alexis approached his hands to the phone, but Lanney slapped them. "Don`t touch that, drownie!" (That`s how Station Square nicknames the Four-Lakers. Weird, isn`t it?) Alexis slapped Lanney`s hand, who slapped Alexis` and it escalated to a fury with them coming to fists and feet. Shadow tried to separate them. Lanney, as a human, didn`t care. He was taller than Alexis anyway.

"**Don`t you dare trying to interrupt my heroic attempt at saving our national sport!**" the tattoo killer said. Now on screen, the director woman was also entering the brawl, and if it had been a cartoon, there would have been a cloud of dirt around with body parts popping there and there. Alexis was on the floor and Lanney was punching him down, while Shadow was trying to get rid of the director who had jumped on his back. It was more ridiculous than funny to watch. "**All those tie guys who sell our sport to foreign cities and worlds shall pay for turning our sport into what it has become! They don't give a fuck about it.**" Shadow had gotten rid of the director and was now slamming his fist on Lanney for the host to release his partner. But as soon as Alexis could move, he attacked Lanney in a vicious manner. The killer was watching all that on his TV screen. "**I`ll kill all these motherfuckers, you two if you try stopping me, and anyone who will get in my way.**" Alexis had grabbed Lanney`s tie and was tugging it, dragging Lanney`s head, which was smashing the desk. The director was attacking Shadow again, and if it was a man, he would have attacked ferociously. "**If you think I`ll let my sport become less important than bowling, only because of a couple of rich…**" the killer stopped there because Shadow pulled off the phone line. Shadow finaly immobilized the director, and Alex had taken full control over Lanney, so Alex talked directly to the camera.

"Listen to me, the sicko. You wanna talk, you call me. 49555-554-15." Lanney was about to get back, so Alexis punched him hard on the head.

To be continued…

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Author`s notes: I took out some of my best French and English puns for the names. Lanney Waitlong, when said very fast, resembles in French to "the year`s gonna be long".


	11. Chapter 10

I still do not own any official character. Only some (most) are mine. Also I`m pretty sure the clue I`ve added will be pretty obvious as to who the next victim will be...

* * *

Chapter 10

STATION SQUARE – HCN CENTER  
MAY 26th, 3250  
8:20 PM

The detectives were gone from the stage, because it was about to become a brawl worse than the ultimate showdown of ultimate destiny.

"Halder must be near his limo, if he`s still in the building," Shadow said. Just then, Alexis got a call as his phone rang the Mexican hat tune.

"_Hello?_"

"**Alex… You wanted to talk to me?**" It was the tattoo killer, obviously. That man was using a voice modulator.

"Keep talking," Shadow whispered as he took out his own cell phone and dialed the SSPD`s number.

"Yeah. What did you do with him?" Alexis asked the killer.

"**Well, I`m just going to leave him on ice.**"

Shadow was talking with some people from SSPD who were especially there to retrace phone calls. "He`s on Coolette`s cell phone. Retrace him. … I don`t care, just retrace him!"

"_Aren`t you speaking French?_" Alexis asked.

"_**When I feel like it…**_** and right now I don`t.**"

"_Listen, I understood pretty much everything you`ve done up to now, but I still don`t get Mac Edward._"

"**He`s the one who really loved Robotropolis and had planned to send a team there… I killed his project in the egg.**"

"_How come you have an accent in the two languages? Who was your teacher: Antoine D`Coolette?_"

"_**Funny… very funny.**_" And the killer hung up. "**Time`s up.**"

Since the killer had hung up, Alexis replaced his cell phone in his pockets and the two detectives rushed to the inside parking area. There were people in Halder`s limo trunk, as it was constantly moving. There were also yells, though these were weak, as if the guys had their mouths covered.

"It`s the police! We`ll get you out," Shadow told the guys, hoping they`d hear him. Shadow looked at the limo`s doors. They were all locked. Shadow planned something difficult with a master key, but it would be too long. Alexis took out his gun and smashed the driver`s window with it.

"It`s unlocked now." Alexis unlocked the door by passing his arm by the broken window, and opened the door. He found the button to open the trunk, and he freed the two captives.

Shadow looked on the back seat. He saw the same gun the cops had seen in Luck`s house. "Tattoo gear, uh?" He showed Alexis his discovery, just as the French detective was freeing the two people in the trunk. "Easy, easy…" Shadow said, helping his partner in freeing the two people from the trunk. To one of them, probably the limo driver: "You okay?"

"Yeah, thanks," the man said. Then the cops pulled out an anthro echidna as well.

"Who are you?" Alexis asked.

"I`m the zamboni driver," he answered. Any hulo game in the HCN Center was on ice. So they had to pass the zamboni after the second and fourth period.

"Where is it?" Alexis asked the zamboni driver, understanding all of a sudden what the tattoo killer meant by letting Halder on ice.

"You`ll find it down there." Just then a security guard arrived in the parking lot.

"Take care of these guys," Shadow said, running after Alexis to the zamboni.

HCN CENTER – HANGAR  
8:30 PM

The killer was busy attaching Halder`s hands to the back of the zamboni. The killer was wearing a mask again, but his hair was long. As soon as he saw Shadow and Alexis coming toward the zamboni, he left his task and ran away.

"Police! Freeze!" Shadow yelled. But the murderer ran away. The masked killer hid and ran to some kind of transportation device. Trying to maneuver the thing, the killer smashed a few things, and the cops knew where he was, so the murderer went at full speed out of the hangar, into the populated streets. Alexis and Shadow tried to stop the guy by shooting the device, but sadly, the killer was too far. Alexis was already running after the machine. "Go, I`ll untie Halder." Alexis was also far when some people, walking near the place, saw Shadow trying to untie Halder. "Come here, I need help!"

The killer saw Alexis running after him and sped up the machine he was on, but Alexis shot the machine, successfully hitting the motor, and the thing went awry. The enemy had to jump off and run. The killer jumped on the street and stopped a golf cart on its way, before running away again. Alexis followed him at full speed, as fast as his coyote legs could help him. The masked guy ended on a street with a lot of people walking around, hoping to escape the cop by hiding in the crowd, but Alexis kept following him.

Shadow was also done with freeing Halder from the zamboni, and on his way he saw the transportation device, which had ended in a wall. The hedgehog heard "Police" far away, in Alexis` tone, and rushed there.

"_Out of the way!_" Alexis yelled, still chasing the enemy. The masked guy was running away, pushing walkers around, and making his way through. But he heard Alexis yelling, and knew the cop was still after him. Alexis ran, but as he was about to end at a cross, the masked enemy, waiting behind a wall, smacked him hard with the mask, making the French cop fall on his back.

"Police! Let me through!" Shadow yelled, arriving on time. The killer had escaped, leaving his mask behind. The mask had long, fake hair stuck to it, which was giving the impression that the one wearing it had long hair. As the people gathered around the cop on the ground, Alexis muttered a few curse words. Shadow arrived on the scene. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I`m okay…" Alexis answered, passing his had over a new scar on his face. The scar was bleeding. Just then his Station Square partner found the mask with long hair. He took it with a stick, to ensure his fingerprints appear on it (which was weird since he`s still wearing gloves, but…).

SSPD  
MAY 27th, 3250  
7:00 AM

Shadow had downloaded his digital camera`s pictures onto is computer and was looking at the clues. The Four-Lakes symbol with the scale on Edward, the "58LEANNA" on Goaler, then the Sol Emerald with _OL K_NG_OM", and finally the new clue they found on Halder, which was a simple circle with lines behind it. Strangely, below there was written a longer message: "CaN`t Solve thIs fast enOugh". The capital letters were placed obviously, but the shock of the past days still hadn`t disappeared. They were still trying to reason all that.

"Look," Shadow told Alexis. "The circle on top, I have no idea what it might be for. I have looked on all the Zone flags, and I couldn`t find a single thing to compare it. Or actually, there is too much choice."

"Are you sure it`s really what it means?" Alexis asked. "It might as well be some kind of ring to tell it`s a rich person."

"This too is possible," Shadow answered. "But then, why the message? A tattoo is hard enough, he might as well have written only capital letters."

"No idea. He`s a lunatic."

Just then Captain Claw McKaz arrived in the place. "We told our gang to look out for anyone who will leave to another city. We placed people in every airport, and we should catch the killer if he plans to strike in another city."

"But if he escapes, shouldn`t we go there too?"

"Not a good idea," Claw answered. "You two might as well blow up a whole place or something similar."

"Wait… maybe the killer knows he`s gone too far by now," Shadow deducted.

"Yes… what do you mean?" Alexis asked.

"Maybe he`s waiting for his prey to come to him actually. What`s coming already?"

"Well, there will be conferences about the future of hulo and why some teams will be moved," McKaz answered. "There will be some great guests, and some important leaders from all around the world. And besides, if you two try going there to stp the killer, you might as well blow up an historical monument or something like that."

"_It`s just another bias,_" Alexis said, offended. Claw wondered what he said, since he knows no French.

"Ignore the coyote, boss. What should we do?"

"Just do whatever you want and can. As long as there is no other corpse in Station Square, I don`t give a shit." On this last word, Claw McKaz left the room.

"What a motherfucking piece of shit of a week, tabarnak de torrieu de calvaire de crisse!" Alexis said. "If the guy`s moving to another Zone, we won`t be able to do anything. I won`t lose my job only if I can bring the guy back. I`ll lose my job over that case. My car`s already lost. The good news is that now, it can`t get any worse."

Shadow sighed. "Yeah, you`re right on that." He closed his laptop. "Say, my stepsister`s gonna come over and cook something great for Matt and I. Wanna be there too? I know that since you`re here, you spent most of your money in restaurants."

"Heh, I`m jobless anyway, so… why not?" Alexis answered before packing his stuff to leave the SSPD.

"Don`t accept only because I accepted you ex`s offer the other day…"

SHADOW`S HOUSE  
MAY 27th, 3250  
3:00 PM

(anyone feeling like time`s going fast now?)

"Hand me the lettuce," Shadow asked.

"I thought you weren`t good at cooking?" Alexis asked, sitting on the counter.

"Well, I can work on the vegetables and the salad before my stepsister arrives. Now be useful ad hand me the lettuce." Shadow waited for Alexis to hand him what he had asked for. "Wait, that`s Roseamy, er… rosemary. I said lettuce." Alexis understood what Shadow said, and smirked when he understood who`s name Shadow had mistakenly said. He handed him the lettuce. Just then Matt arrived.

"The guest room is ready now. Or at least, it`s better," the fox said.

"Thanks, sonny," Shadow greeted. "Mind putting the plates and utensils on the table?"

Matt took the items and left for the dining room. Alexis walked to the fridge. "Got beer?"

"I don`t, Alex, but I think there`s some cognac in there," he said, pointing his knife to a cupboard.

"…Aunt Janet bought some today," Matt answered. "It should be in the fridge." The bat arrived just then.

"So, where`s the punk who saved my stepbrother?" she asked cheerfully. Alexis, who was looking in the fridge for a beer, lifted his eyes to look at the beauty who arrived in the kitchen.

"Aunt Janet, here`s Alexis. Alexis, here`s aunt Janet."

"Ah, right…" Approaching the cop: "Just Janet will be fine."

"Fine. Enchanté, "Just Janet"."

"Enchantée as well…" Janet answered.

"Ow!" Shadow said, bringing attention to him, cutting off the regards of Alexis and Janet. "Wait, that`s nothing," Shadow explained.

"I see you`re not from Shadow`s family."

"No, I`m Rouge`s sister. What, it`s that obvious?" the bat asked.

"Want a beer?" Alexis asked, handing her a beer.

"Thanks, baby." Shadow was looking at them. He doubted about a growing romance between his partner and his stepsister.

"_Well, Station Square`s not as boring as I thought it would be,_" Alexis said.

"Come again?" Janet asked.

"He said you were worth coming from Four-Lakes," Shadow said, in a mid-voice, causing the two to look at him. Shadow smiled in a happy way, something he rarely does.

Well, after Alexis and Janet met up better and learned about each other, Janet went in the kitchen to prepare the meal. Shadow only looked at the pictures on his laptop while they were waiting for dinner time, and Alexis and Matt played basketball behind the house.

To be continued…

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Author`s notes: Next chapter will also be in two parts - the dinner, and then the night for each of the main heroes. Let`s say what they will live on their own will be very different.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Review answer

To pi: Well, if you`re talking about the underlined parts, it`s only curse words. It just cannot be translated. All the longer words are used in everyday life where I live to express anger or when we`re pissed off… We use "de" (of) to link them in chains. That`s something that can`t be done with the usual sex-related curse words. As for "je m`en câlisse", keep in mind it`s like "I don`t give a shit".

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SHADOW`S HOUSE  
MAY 27th, 3250  
6:00 PM

Alexis grabbed he bottle of wine.

"I bet you`re kidding now," Janet said.

"No, seriously, I only felt like some big electric shock." Alexis poured some wine in Janet`s glasses, then in his. "I was waiting to die, but… nothing happened. Zero pain. Isn`t it true, Shadow?" He asked his partner. "When the bullet passes through you can pass ten minutes without feeling a thing?"

"Well, I usually try to solve a case without getting shot at all," Shadow answered.

"So, what happened to the guy who shot?" Matt asked, intrigued.

"Well, I shot him back," Alexis replied. "And he died before hitting the ground. But because of the bleeding, I was stating to feel, um…" Alexis motioned something near his head with his hands, and Shadow understood. _"… dizzy._"

"Dizzy?"

"Yes, dizzy. So, um, because of that, I decided to go outside and get some fresh air. I`d wait for the backup outside. So I handcuffed the guy…"

"That sounds cautious, even though it is stupid…" Shadow commented.

"…why?"

"I mean, if the guy is dead, it`s no use handcuffing him. He won`t get back on his feet, he`s dead."

"Yes, but the day before, I had seen a detective series… and in the episode, the hero thought the enemy was dead, he had shot him and everything, but all of a sudden, BLEEEEH!" He grimaced, making Janet laugh. "I was not6 going to take any risk, we never know what might happen."

Alexis took a sip of his wine. Matt, Janet and Shadow were listening. They were taking a bite once in a while.

"So, I`m in the backyard, I`m waiting for the backups, trying to calm down and get some fresh air, when suddenly, that guarding dog or whatever it was attacks me."

"You mean those robotic dogs who look a lot like real dogs?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, that. Well, _all of a sudden_…"

"All of a sudden," Shadow corrected.

"All of a sudden, that robot dog attacks me, it jumps on me, it`s mad in tabarnak."

"That means it was really, really, really mad," Shadow explained.

"Do you think he`s just telling a story or it happened for real?" Janet asked.

"No idea myself," her stepbrother answered.

"No, I`m dead serious here. Look, I even got a scar to prove it." Alexis shows the scar, somewhere on his chest, and Janet touches it, for the fun of it. Alexis said a little "Ow…" to make her giggle, and continued his story. "So, I; m bleeding like crazy, and I have to fight that dog, with my, er…" He motions grabbing something with his hands, and Shadow understands.

"With your bare hands?"

"Yes, that's it. I`m fighting the dog with my bare hands, and when looking to it I see the On/Off button, and when it attacks me to the face, I catch it and turn it off."

"Why didn't you shoot?" Matt asked.

"The robot was just doing what it had been programmed for, Matt," Shadow explained.

"Exactly. So, I immobilize the robot in a headlock, I finally push the button to Off, but then I pass out from blood loss. But the backups arrived right then and found me on the ground, with the robot dog in the arms, er…"

"Spooning?" Shadow asked.

"Yes, that`s it. They also found the dead guy handcuffed in the living room."

Matt laughed a bit. It was a funny story.

"Lucky dog…" Janet said in a seductive tone. She looked at Alexis and he looked at her in return.

SHADOW`S HOUSE  
9:00 PM

Shadow was cleaning out his face with a towel, in his bedroom`s washrooms. Outside, someone tried to unlock the front door from outside. That someone being unable, he broke the glass, passed his arm through it, unlocked the door and entered. Shadow heard the noise.

"Matthew?" he asked.

The person entered the house. He was wearing a white mask with a long vertical hole in front as well as two triangular holes on each side. The man walked in the hall. The man loaded his gun. Shadow came out of his bathroom, wondering about the noise. "Matthew?" Shadow asked, but then he saw the man, shooting in another direction. The hedgehog grabbed the man`s arm, and they fought. Shadow tried to stop the man, but they broke a window in their brawl. As if it wasn`t enough, they fell down the stairs and broke some thing around, but the fall knocked the masked guy unconscious. Shadow approached the guy and took out his mask. It was… Luck?

"You?" Shadow muttered, until Luck woke up and grabbed Shadow at the throat. Shadow and Luck switched position, now each trying to strangle the other. Shadow threw Luck on the ground, but the helicopter driver dragged him down, and he fell on top of the walrus. Now Luck had caught his gun back, and was threatening Shadow with it. Just then, Matt arrived in the room.

"Dad!" the fox yelled, jumping at Luck. "Leave my father!" Matt held to the walrus` shoulders and did not let go, so Luck threw him down in front of him. Luck took his gun and prepared to shoot the teenager, but Shadow grabbed a nearby item and smashed Luck`s arm with it. Luck tried to regain composure, but Shadow just attacked more. Luck finally threw Shadow on the floor, but Shadow pulled out a gun. Luck escaped. Shadow rushed to his son.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so…" the fox answered.

"It was great, sonny. Thanks." Just then, Shadow remembered about Alexis. "Coolette!"

Twenty minutes later, the hedgehog and his son ran to the guest room, and knocked at the door. But nobody was answering. So they tried to find him, and knocked on Janet`s private room, decided to ask her where Alexis was. That`s when they were greeted by Alexis, wearing something with red feathers.

"What the hell are you doing in there?" Shadow asked.

***

SHADOW`S HOUSE – JANET`S PRIVATE ROOM  
9:00 PM

Alexis and Janet, lips locked, were trying their best to move without falling on the floor and they walked awkwardly to the guest room. They were dizzy, as their waking was erratic; or maybe they were drunk. Touching a wall, they kept kissing, as if they were madly in love with each other. They finally reached the bed, and as they were now on it, Janet was teasing Alexis.

"You`re such a hard-churned detective… Show me where your weapon is."

"Search me then."

They started kissing again, until Janet fell over him. As she was sitting over him, he grabbed her throat lovingly, not trying to strangle her but trying to touch her bat face.

(Important notice: the actual sex will not be described. So, for anyone who wanted to see that, there`s tons of M-rated fics for that.)

They were fighting for dominance until the real act begins. As they kissed passionately, Alexis switched positions and laid Janet on the bed. Janet folded her bat wings. They kept kissing even more, until they turned again. Janet`s shirt was thrown on the floor.

"Teach me something else," she ordered.

"_Leo and Lea go to school._"

"_Leo and Lea…_"

They got prepared for a night of intense love, in which Alexis often told Janet something in French and she repeated it. She was a good student. As they were going at it, Janet was yelling the motto of Four-Lakes "_I regret nothing_". A little inappropriate for the situation, but she kept repeating it.

Bu after twenty minutes of this, they got interrupted by someone knocking at the guest room`s door. It was Shadow, coming to tell him about what happened on his side. Alexis rushed to put on his pants, hid Janet beside the bed, put on his head an object with red feathers on it, and opened the door. Just then he noticed he was shirtless. He also noticed it was actually not his bedroom.

"What the hell are you doing in there?" Shadow asked.

"Janet? It`s for you," Alexis yelled, revealing who he was with.

"Why, of course it`s for me. It`s my stepbrother Shadow! So, what happened?" She had put her clothes on.

"Well, I saved dad`s life," Matt told her.

"From what?" Alexis asked, searching for his dark blue shirt. "From destroying the house because his curling team lost tonight?"

Shadow looked at him with an air saying "One day you`ll regret what you just said."

"No, Luck. He was alive. And he tried to kill me and my son."

"No way, you`re kidding me, right?" Alexis said.

"No, we fought, and he got away. I harmed him though."

"Are you really sure it was him?"

"Yes, when I removed his mask, I could see the long teeth, the think mustache, and the eyes… it was him, no doubt on that."

Alexis paused as he found his shirt and began putting it on. "Why was he trying to kill you?"

"He wasn`t just trying to kill me, he was trying to kill the two of us. He had no idea you were fucking my stepsister."

Alexis thought for some seconds as he replaced his shirt. "_If it was him, then… who was in my car trunk?_"

"I have no idea, but then, the body was left in Four-Lakes, and Luck`s here. Call Hood," Shadow suggested. Alexis did so.

***

The phone rang a cool techno tune. This awoke Hood, who was sleeping on the job. "Last call! Last call! Last g…" He grabbed his cell phone and answered. "Yoh?"

"_Hood?_" Alexis asked.

"_Yes indeed._"

"_You were still working at this hour?_"

"_That`s me._"

"_Anyway, it`s Alex. I was wondering if you had anything about the guy in my car trunk._"

"_I was, er… working on that. You`re making me do some freaking overtime, you know that, right? That body is like a puzzle with five thousand pieces that you have handed to your blonde cousin, and when she gives it back to you it`s a mess, there`s half the pieces missing, there`s some in the sofa`s cracks, some others in the dryer, and you`re missing a sock, and…_" He had said that in his typical Mach 5 talking speed.

"_Hood! Got no time to talk._"

"_Hey, by the way… if it was really a guy in your car trunk, the operation sure was successful._"

"_What are you talking about?_" Alexis asked.

"_Because the guy… it`s a girl. A bat._"

Alexis looked at Shadow, who wasn`t understanding either.

"_Yeah, I couldn`t really take out a part of her DNA, so I took some of her teeth and tested them, I got her dentist file. I gave her a crappy toothbrush and a surprise, she`s very happy._" He was kidding when saying the last sentence, of course. She was dead,

"_HOOD! Who is it?_"

Hood grabbed some papers, noticed it was the papers about the victim of arsenic cake, moved on his chair to another table, found the papers and read them. "_She`s… her name is Carta. Carta… cute name._"

"_Carta… Carta the barmaid?_" Alexis said loud enough for Shadow to hear it.

"_That`s why she was texting me "HELP!" when we were watching your daughter`s ballet recital!_" Shadow said, explaining why he looked scared when reading the texto.

"_Thanks Hood for the info_," Alexis ended.

"_Wait wait wait!_" Hood yelled. "_Two things before you go. You know the arsenic cake? I found out it also had opium, lichen scum, narcotics, rat poison, cobra venom, and three segments of grapefruit. Kinda a killer mix, isn't it?_" Alexis was about to hang up. "_Waitwaitwaitwaitwait! I noticed something else… Carta backwards… is "Atrac"._"

Alexis hung up. "Shit…" He turned to Shadow. "She had your number, she could have called you. That`s why they killed her. Luck must have known and got rid of her."

"But that`s impossible!" Shadow yelled. "Remember, he was in the trunk of your car. For all that, he should have gotten out, stolen a car, gotten back to the bar, kidnapped the barmaid and taken the bomb, came back, locked her in the trunk and rigged the bomb? The recital was not long enough for all that."

"_That means he`s not alone,_" Alexis deducted.

To be continued…

* * *

I got about 3/4 of the movie complete! That means this fanfiction will end probably around chapter 15. Maybe 17, if I add a lot of new stuff. And believe me, I will.


	13. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I still don`t own Shadow, nor Sonic, however I own many, many more.

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Chapter 12

ALEXIS` HOUSE  
MAY 27th, 3250  
9:40 PM

The phone rang in Annie`s bedroom. She was already sleeping, probably. Or maybe she was just trying to sleep, as she answered immediately.

"_Hello?_"

"_Annie?_" Alexis asked.

"_What… Alex? Talk about an hour to call…_"

"_I was calling to ask… how`s it going at home?_"

"_Pretty good… nothing bad happened… but you don`t sound normal… are you drunk?_"

"_No, it`s just that I miss you. I got the blues. Pass me Jen._"

"_Alex…_" Annie began. "_Jennifer`s sleeping at this hour. Like any normal thirteen years old…_"

"_I just need to hear her voice; it will get me out of my gloom… pretty please._"

The pale blue hedgehog woke up from bed. "_What are you hiding from me now?_"

"_Come on, Annie…"_ Alexis began.

"_What?_"

"_Annie… go, please._"

"_Okay, okay, I`m going, I`m going…_" The mother walked to where her daughter was sleeping. "_She was worried about you, and she missed you, so she went to sleep in your bed, on the first floor…_" Annie went up the stairs, and walked to Alexis` room… the place was empty. Jen wasn`t there, and there was a bit of a mess in the room. "_Jen?_" The window was open. "_Jen… Jen disappeared! The window`s open, she`s no more there, she`s gone!_"

This confirmed what Alexis feared the most. The case was now personal.

Annie was scared like never before. "_When I went to see her, not even an hour ago, she was drifting to sleep! Now she`s gone!_"

Just then, Shadow`s cell phone rang. Since he was not wearing his SSPD jacket, he picked out the cell phone from his pants, and answered. "Hello?"

"_**Alex?**_" It was the tattoo killer.

"Who is this?" Shadow asked. On Alexis` cell phone, Annie was panicking, s Alexis kept silent to hear Shadow and the killer`s conversation.

"**Oh, it`s detective Shadow, um… I have a call for mister Alexis Depardieu Coolette from his daughter Jen.**" Alexis grabbed Shadow`s cell phone.

"If you dare touching even one of her quills, I`ll kill you, mon tabarnak."

"**Your girl is fine.**" Then, to Jen, loud enough for Alex to hear: "_**It`s your dad, Jennifer.**_"

"_Dad, come to get me!_" Alexis could hear his daughter yell. "_Please, help me, I`m scared! Dad, help me!_"

"**SHUT UP!**" the killer yelled. To Alexis: "**I have nothing against your daughter. **_**However, you`re really getting on my nervous system.**_"

"_What is it you want?_" Alexis asked.

"**I know you`re very smart and I`m pretty sure you guessed who the next victim will be… Stay out of my way, and nothing will happen to your daughter. **_**If you don't let me kill this final victim, then it`s your daughter who will have that fate. Do nothing**_**, and Jen will be safe and sound.**"

"_My daughter`s got nothing to do in that._"

"**You`re right, and it would be too bad for her life to end at thirteen… **_**because of you.**_" And he chuckled as he hung up. Alexis could hear Annie sobbing on the other phone. Shadow approached his pal, worried too for Annie.

ALEXIS` HOUSE  
MAY 28th, 3250  
9:00 AM

Many policemen came out of Alexis` house. They had found no real clue. The FLPD had learned about Jennifer`s kidnapping, as Annie called them, and that`s how she learned of his temporary suspended job. She was really angry at him for that, but even more because of her child that got kidnapped. Shadow closed the door behind him. From inside, we could hear yells and cries. From Alexis and Annie. Shadow sighed, so he turned on his portable computer. His wife was missing him again. As he got to his Vmail account, he saw a new video that arrived from Rouge and listened to it. Rouge`s top half appeared in a video.

"Hi, honey. I couldn`t be home yesterday, because G.U.N. had another mission for me. Apparently, someone succeeded in stealing a Chaos Emerald from the fully-protected bank. If you have time to answer me, tell me how it`s going with your case. If you don't, I wish you good luck in solving that case in Four-Lakes! Tell Matt not to worry, I trust Janet enough, she`s like a second mother to him. Smootch, Rouge. (She blew a kiss.) Oh, by the way… I can`t wait to have a mission where we`ll team up together!"

Shadow almost felt guilty to think about his own couple while his friend had a big problem.

In the bedroom, Annie, between two sobs, was begging Alexis for an answer. "_Tell me! Tell me what happened! What's gonna happen!_" She blew her nose in a tissue, and continued. "_What have you done?_" Alexis looked at her without saying a word, so Annie kept crying again. Alexis approached his ex to hug her, but she pushed him away. "_Don`t touch me!_" He tried again to comfort her, but she jumped out of reach, yelling "_DON`T TOUCH ME!!!_" She yelled it so loud that Shadow heard it from outside, turned his head to where the yell came from, and then sighed. "_I want my daughter again, don't you freaking understand that?_ _If he touches just one of her quills, I don`t want to see you ever again, Alexis! _Osti!"

Alexis began crying too. It was a difficult thing for the two of them, and it was no more time to act cool. Everything comes to an end. "_I`m… sorry._" Tears rolled down his cheeks. "_Sorry,_" he muttered again. And this time, it was Annie who approached to hug him, and Alexis took her in his arms. They cried on each other`s shoulder, but it could never comfort any of them.

"_I want our daughter…_" Annie said with difficulty because of the tears. As Alexis held his ex close to him, a tear rolled down, and his face turned from sad to angry. Angry at the motherfucker who did that.

Alexis finally came out of the house, wearing a brown leather jacket this time. "Is she okay?" Shadow asked Alexis. The French detective still had his angry face. Shadow knew it was not him Alexis was mad at. Alexis said nothing, but just then, a brand new, Sonix Aero 3250 car arrived in the entryway. A fox came out of it. He had long brown hair and grey fur. As he approached the detectives, he threw a key set, which Alexis caught.

"_Okay, your new car`s there. Oxen said you`d need one now._"

"_Tell him thanks._"

"_Anything else I have to do?_" the fox asked.

"_Comfort Annie while we`ll be gone._" The fox nodded. He was a bit shorter than Alexis, but apparently, they were good friends, probably from work. Shadow put his right hand on Alexis` shoulder.

"Time to go now. Let me drive." Alexis didn't complain and handed him the keys right away, as they walked to the car. Alexis sat on the passenger`s seat, and Shadow handed him the computer, which was not turned off.

"Have you found out who was the next victim?" Alexis asked.

Shadow smirked. "There is only one person in the whole world, who might fit the clue… Look better at the letters."

Alexis looked. "CaN`t Solve thIs fast enOugh"… and the tattoo was a ball with lines behind… speed lines? And the capital letters… They said the answer in unison.

"King Sonic the Hedgehog."

FOUR-LAKES HULO CENTER  
MAY 28th, 3250  
11:00 AM

"_Wait, you`re serious on that?" Shadow asked. "It`s like stealing the Declaration of Independence of Station Square, or the Treaty of Liberty of Four-Lakes! Or the Louvre`s Mona Lisa!_"

"_We have no other choice. To save Sonic… we have to kidnap him ourselves._" Alexis was dead serious there. Stealing the most protected pieces of paper in the history of Four-Lakes or Station Square was something, but kidnapping a king, no matter if it`s to avoid him be murdered… was beyond insanity. Shadow smiled. "_What`s so funny?_" Alexis asked.

"_One, it`s been a while I haven`t seen Sonic. Two, I know exactly how we will do that. He always got bodyguards, who retire only when he asks them to. They won`t let me pass, but he never heard of you. And three, unless his castle`s culinary tastes are different from before, he should still like…_" Shadow pointed to an abandoned cart there, on which a clear inscription announced hot dogs with chili sauce.

"…_chili dogs?_" Alexis asked. "_It has a chance to work._"

FOUR-LAKES HULO CENTER – SONIC`S ROOM

The King was resting on a couch. This was a big change from his castle. It`s been a while he had ever seen Station Square… and he never came to Four-Lakes before. He might have seen it, in the distance, but nothing more. Well, now he was there, and it was French. Like Antoine. That was not really cool. Sonic, who was watching a nonsensical movie on the flat-screened 51 inches television, turned off the TV. Just then he got a call on his personal cell phone. He had one for affairs, and one for his personal life. Being a king requires that kind of thing, after all… Kings in the past didn`t have that kind of thing anyway.

"Hello?" It was Sally, his wife. "…Yes, I miss you too… how`s it going in Robotropolis? … If everything is fine, it`s cool. … Amy`s gone? … She can`t have followed me here, besides she knows you`re my wife now. … Yeah, sometimes I miss my escapes from her grip. It was a good training. I`m not as good as before in running, I lost a bit of it. … No, my bodyguards are trustworthy. Anyway, nobody knows me here. … Love you too. Smootch." And he hung up.

In the hall before Sonic`s room, a coyote (obviously Alexis), disguised as a chili dogs seller, was pushing a chili dogs stand in front of him. Shadow was hidden in its container, where the seller should usually have placed the buns, sausages and chili. Alexis was stopped by two bodyguards. "Where do you think you`re going?" the tall one asked. Sonic heard that from inside his room.

"I am only a poor chilidogs seller, and I heard from a certain source that King Sonic loved chilidogs."

"Show us your license."

"What is it, boys?" Sonic asked from inside.

"A chilidog seller, King Sonic," the smaller guard answered.

"I never ordered any chilidog…" Sonic wondered out loud. "But any chilidog is welcome in the King`s stomach! Been ages since the last time I ate that!"

"Should we search his cart before, sir?" The tall one asked.

"No, I have never seen dangerous chilidogs. There is no danger in my opinion. If there`s a problem, I will let you know."

"Fine, you can enter," the smaller guard said.

As Alexis entered the place, King Sonic closed the door behind them. Alexis looked at the hedgehog. Sonic was wearing a red cape over his left shoulder, as well as a small crown, awkwardly placed over his top quills. He also has a scepter covered with jewels. If Shadow could see it, he would say it`s Rouge who`d get jealous.

"So, how many chilidogs will get down the King`s esophagus for lunch?" Alexis asked funnily.

"Show me how many you have, and I`ll probably eat it all."

Alexis opened the small door of the cart, and Sonic looked inside. "…Shadow? Is that a coup d`état?"

Shadow came out with much problems, but covered Sonic`s mouth. "No, but one`s getting prepared against you, and if we do nothing you`ll be killed."

Sonic looked very suspicious. "Yeah, right. It's a big lie. I`m going to call my bodyguards and send you two for a good time in jail. Seriously, Shadow, I thought you were better than that."

"Can`t you just listen?" Alexis asked.

"And you, who are you?" Sonic asked Alexis.

"King… Sonic," Shadow said, pausing a King since he disliked to call Sonic a King, "this is Alexis, detective at Four-Lakes Police Department. He`s helping me on a case, and it has lead us to you."

"What, I`m supposedly guilty of something? Antoine already tried that, you know. He failed miserably."

"_Keep up with your comments on my cousin and I`ll make you eat that crown of your in your chilidogs._"

"What did he say?" Sonic asked. He was still not very good in French. Sure, he had learned a bit, but mostly what he needed to know for the speech and answer questions. "Whatever. What`s the case exactly?"

Shadow explained him everything. The tattoo killer, Luck, the victims, the tattoos, and how they ended up knowing Sonic was to be killed. "Listen, the speed that tattoo killer works at almost rivals yours, so we can`t take any chance."

"And you`re saying he wants to kill me? Just why exactly?"

"Well, that lunatic wants hulo teams to quit being moved to other Zones, other universes, other countries, and to achieve his goal he`s ready to anything, even a coup d`état. He understood that if he kidnaps none other than the King, they`ll listen to him."

"Okay, you guys are crazy," Sonic said. "I`m calling my bodyguards." As Sonic was about to push the alarm button, Alexis yelled.

"Stop." Sonic stopped in his way. "He kidnapped my daughter too. And if we get in his way, he`ll kill her. And if you ring the alarm, he`ll understand we`re here, and he`ll kill her. My Jen… how I want to save her…" Alexis almost began crying. Sonic understood.

"…you`re scared for your daughter, I understand. If my Sonia was to get harmed, I dunno what I would do. Show me what you got."

Shadow turned on his computer, and Sonic saw the Vmailbox logo. Shadow clicked Rouge`s message.

"So you married Rouge, eh? Finally there might be a heart in you, Shadow…" Sonic jokingly said.

"If you don`t stop, you`ll lose yours, King Sonic," Shadow warned. "After all, you`re married to Sally. Why couldn`t I just settle down too, eh?"

This kept Sonic silent. Shadow showed Sonic the tattoo. The capital letters, when mixed up, could form SONIC. Then, the circle, nothing else than Sonic in a Spin Dash, with speed lines behind. It was clear enough. "So that`s it. Either we kidnap you and save you, either he kidnaps you and kills you. As much as I hate having to save the one who was my arch-rival back then…"

"Okay, but how will you do that?" Sonic asked. "Shadow was hidden in the chilidog cart, if they see him come out, then they`ll understand. If they see me come out, they will follow me and bring attention. And if Alexis looks suspicious, then… they`ll understand too."

Shadow looked at everything. And an idea popped up. Alexis got the same idea at the same time.

"Why don`t we hide…" Shadow began.

"…him in the cart…" Alexis continued.

"…I`ll pass by the ventilation…"

"…while I`ll pass through the security…"

"…and we meet up in the underground parking…"

"…where Sonic will hide in the car trunk, à la Four-Lakes."

Sonic looked at them. It was funny to see them complete each other`s sentences. Until he heard the final sentence.

"What, in a car trunk?" Sonic yelled.

"Yes, how else?" Alexis asked. "If we can drive you to a safe place, we will do that. I bet some hotels will be pleased to have you as a guest."

"…Besides," Shadow continued, "your speech is already ruined anyway. I thought you were stressed at talking in front of an audience?"

"Well, if it gets me out of that stress, okay then," King Sonic ended. Alexis hid Sonic in the cart, while Shadow took the ventilation way, and they left the room as if nothing had happened, leaving the crown, the scepter and the cape behind.

To be continued…

* * *

Here it is, Sonic`s surprise appearance! It was a long chapter, right?

For those who wonder, that story happens 13 years after the continuity of the games... and in the unaltered Mobius: X Years Later version of the comics. So Sonia (who should be 16 in the unaltered future) should be 3 years old. I hope that helps you situate the story in the timeline...


	14. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: Don`t own many things in that story. Besides, some usual characters make an appearance in this chapter...

Chapter 13

Alexis came out of the room, still disguised as the chilidog seller. Sonic was hidden inside the cart, and Shadow was inside the ventilation conduct. Alexis talked with the guards. "Guys, I`m really sorry… I think King Sonic caught a little digestion problem… He wolfed down a lot of chilidogs, and it`s having its effects right now. You might want to keep him alone for some time." Sonic, inside the cart, was embarrassed. Couldn`t Alexis find a better lie, or something less… embarrassing? Well, all that counts is that he would be safe. The guards nodded and let Alexis pass.

In the conference room, which was a room open to public, humans and anthros from Four-Lakes were waiting for the speech. A beaver mascot was going around, hugging kids and taking the pose for amateur photographs and their children. Tails, who took some time to co-ordinate the whole thing, was talking with Amy. They were wearing formal three-piece suits, which game them an extremely serious look. A slightly bald human, wearing the same type of suit, came to them.

"_Mister Prower, do you have any idea what King Sonic might have been doing? He`s not answering._"

Tails didn't know either what was happening. He had no idea. "_The guards told us about a chilidog seller… we all know how King Sonic loves this kind of treat. Don`t tell me we got a schedule to respect, I know all that._" Tails, who was now 21, was a lot more serious than before. He was in charge of the castle`s machines, as well as the transportation and some affairs. Did I mention Tails learned French, German and Japanese? He yelled to the crowd: "No worry, everyone. King Sonic should be there soon."

Amy Rose was going around the room, probably giving orders to people. She still had a small crush on Sonic. She might be 25 and more mature than before, she`s still the pink fan girl she has always been. She saw the chilidog seller (Alexis) leaving his cart around, and saw it was a chilidog cart. "Maybe I can go and bring Sonic some chilidogs… I`m now his servant, in a way… and he always liked that." She walked to the chilidog cart. But where was that seller going? He was leaving his cart around… didn't he fear there might be someone who steals what`s inside the cart? Buns, sausages, chili sauce?

Alexis walked to a locked door, and used a mater key to open it. Behind, the ventilation conduct was ending. Alexis heard some English curse words as Shadow followed the conduct, and landed right in front of the Four-Lakes cop.

"_Still not using French curse words, Shadow?_" Alexis joked.

"Osti…" Shadow replied, to cut him off.

"_That`s the spirit, man. I let the chilidog cart in the conference room. Nobody will know Sonic`s in there. How`s it going with the plan?_" Alexis asked.

"_Well, as of now, we should just bring King Sonic to the car and put him in the trunk. Then we`ll see. Wait, you left the cart without any surveillance?_"

"…_shit._" Alexis realized his mistake.

Just then, Amy Rose was moving the cart to King Sonic`s room.

"Sorry, Amy, you are not allowed to pass," the taller guard told her.

"Why?" Amy asked. "I`m just bringing him some food. He must be dead of terror just to talk in front of a crowd."

"Wait, this is chilidogs, right?" The smaller guard asked. "That`s what made King Sonic a little... sick. He`s apparently confined to the washroom after he ate one too many."

"Oh, you know, guys chilidogs are to him what bologna is to an old singer; such a tasty snack he always eats too much and throws up, but he`ll soon be back for his, his, his, his, woo! Hi-hi-hi-his chilidogs."

"Seriously, I doubt it is the best time to go see him."

"Come on, let me enter… I have always been his friend, since I couldn`t be her lover."

Sonic held his laughs in the cart, but it was really difficult. Did she just know she was traveling him around? Apparently, she didn`t.

"You`re really pitiful. If you really want to enter, go ahead, but if he asks you to go out and you don`t, we`ll take out of by force."

Amy entered, and went to the washroom, hoping to help her forever crush, but there she found… nobody? She looked around, and the place was totally empty. She began panicking. However, she was also wondering why the cart was that heavy. Buns and sausages aren`t that weighty usually… she decided to look inside, fearing some kind of trap. As she saw who was inside the cart, she almost fell unconscious.

"…Amy?" Sonic said, contorted in the small space of the cart. "What are you doing?" He saw Amy`s face turning red of anger.

"King Sonic the Hedgehog! Were you trying to escape your duties?"

Sonic stepped out and explained the situation. "Now, thanks to you, I`m back to square one, and I might as well be found."

"Wait, why would someone try to kill you?" Amy explained.

"There`s nothing to explain, it`s a lunatic who wants me dead. Now, unless you bring the cart back to where it was, with me in it, either I call the guards."

"…Okay," Amy said. "I`ll even explain the situation to Tails… if you peck me on the cheek."

Sonic blushed. "I`m married to Sally, you know it."

"Aw, I`m not asking for a real mouth-and-tongue kiss, Sonic! Come on, just a little peck!"

"…no way."

***

Somewhere else in the Sports Center, someone was lying unconscious, half-undressed, as the mascot was looking at itself in the mirror. The mascot? Sorry, I`m wrong. The new person in the costume was none other than Luck. After he put on the ridiculously oversized beaver head, the walrus looked at himself in the mirror. "Are you talking to me?" He acted scenes from an action movie, as if he was a godfather about to kill an enemy. "Are you talking to me?" He turned from the mirror, then jumped back to look at his reflection, yelling: "Ah-Ha!" He tried to pick up his gun from the sink, but his big plush mascot hands were a pain in the neck. Then he moved to the door, but slammed in it. "Ouch, tabarnak!" He finally opened the door and prepared for his mission, which had already been thwarted by Alexis and Shadow. This, Luck didn't know, but even if he did, he couldn't do a thing.

***

Alexis and Shadow showed their badge to the guards, who let them in immediately. "Is there a problem, agent Shadow?" the small one asked.

"Yes, we are here to take back a chilidog cart that might contain explosives. Apparently someone who had no idea what was in it brought it here for King Sonic."

"Where do you get that information from?" the tall one asked.

"Uh… we have been informed, and it was confirmed. The explosives have been hidden after a chilidog seller came out of here, and probably let someone else come in with… now can we enter?" Shadow lied.

"…fine. Get inside."

As Alexis and Shadow entered, they saw Sonic pecking on Amy`s cheek. They didn`t want to know.

"King Sonic?" Shadow asked. "It`s time for your safety. But… wait, what`s Amy Rose doing here?"

Amy recognized him. "Shadow? What happened for the ten years I have never seen you?"

Sonic answered for him. "Shadow married Rouge, as she gained a lot of importance to him, and as for that other cop, it`s Antoine`s cousin."

"Hey, pinky cutie," Alexis said, trying to flirt, until Shadow smacked him behind the head.

"Business first, flirting later, okay Alexis? Now, Sonic, get in the cart and we`ll go and protect you. You`re gonna spend some time in a car trunk."

"When I`ll be gone, Amy, explain the situation to Tails. He`ll understand. I didn't peck you for nothing, right? You got a mission, you better do it. I have a meeting with destiny."

"Fine, King Sonic," the pink hedgehog said, with hearts instead of her pupils. She knew she had no chance now with him, so she felt down.

"You know, I`m alone for now, pinky beauty…" Alexis began. Shadow face-palmed.

"That`s enough! _First you spend a night in Rouge`s sister`s bed, then you`re hitting on Amy Rose… that`s it, you`re really trying to be more a Casanova than Scourge._ Sonic, get in the cart."

***

Alexis and Shadow passed the security with the "disarmed" explosives hidden in the cart… but it was a lie. Sonic was hidden there.

"We`re hiding these explosives in our car`s trunk. Sonic is safe again… though we recommend not going in the washroom for a while." Sonic almost had a nervous laugh at the thought.

As they put Sonic in the trunk, the King was complaining.

"Why in the trunk? I thought you were kidding! I thought you would leave me in the back seat or something!"

"It's a Four-Lakes tradition, King!" Shadow jokingly said. The hedgehog closed the trunk, and they left again for the conference room.

Amy had told Tails the story, and they were now trying to keep it all secret. Shadow and Alexis arrived in the room, so Tails went to see them.

"Hey, Shadow… been a long while, eh? Last time I really saw you, I was eleven!"

"Tails, if you want to speak French, no problem. I think Alexis here would prefer that."

"_Okay, okay. So, is that entire story true? The lunatic, the coup d`état, everything? Sorry, but it just sounds so weird._"

"_Yes it is,_" Alexis said. "I know it; he got my daughter captive. s fro Sonic, he`s safe and sound. If he gets in danger even more, we`ll do everything we can to save him."

"_That`s somewhat funny to hear, you know? Because Sonic was a hero thirteen years ago. How he defeated Perfect Chaos… how he won over Solaris…_"

Shadow coughed. He had helped on that battle too!

"_Anyway, now that Sonic is a king, he`s over-protected, he no more has to be a hero… that`s weird. Now, what…_"

Alexis looked to the beaver mascot. Some anthro kids were running to the mascot, hoping to get hugged, but the character in the mascot pushed them away. That looked suspicious.

Shadow was too busy planning with Tails a plan to avoid the scandal. All the newspapers would take that info to front page if they knew Sonic was targeted for a coup d`état. Alexis couldn't really disturb them. Finally, they planned a little something. Shadow arrived on the stand, approached the microphone, and said: "Testing, one, two…"

Someone came to ask him what he was doing. Shadow showed his police badge. "Everyone, I have some bad news. King Sonic the Hedgehog will not come for a speech, as he got food intoxication. No worry, everything will be fine."

Alexis spied on the beaver mascot. It was listening to what Shadow was saying. The tattoo killer, behind his computer screen, watching the conference, was turning on his cell phone.

"The press conference is thus cancelled for today, and will occur another day. Sorry for the inconvenience."

The cell phone rang on Luck, and he couldn`t easily pick it up because of his mascot disguise. Alexis heard the cell phone ring however.

The bald man from before began yelling. "_What the hell? You`re kidding, right? You`re laughing at all the French people here!_"

"I am not laughing at all. If I am, it`s to everyone here, including the English people. The press conference will be back in some days, hopefully King Sonic will have recovered until then."

The mascot was now finding its way through the crowd, pushing cameramen and parents aside. Alexis decided to follow him. But before, he dialed Shadow`s cell phone number. Shadow answered. "How was I?"

"Good, _but you`re followed._ Don't turn around. It`s the mascot. Bring it down the stairs, I follow you."

To be continued…

* * *

Author`s notes: I hope I wasn`t too OOC with Amy and Tails... Remember, it happens 13 years after the continuity, a lot of things change in thirteen years! Personalities change, characters change a bit... or sometimes a lot.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

FOUR-LAKES HULO CENTER

MAY 28th, 3250

12:00 AM

Shadow closed his cell phone and walked to the staircase as the mascot, Luck in the disguise, was following him from far, dancing over an imaginary music. The big beaver stopped dancing and rushed to the staircase. Shadow was almost on the floor below already.

Luck put a foot after the other on the first stair, but those huge plush feet weren`t helping. He swore when he noticed he could only walk on the side, because his feet were too big to be on a stair. He went foot after foot, trying not to fall down. He swore even more.

Alexis, on top of the staircase, heard Luck, so he hid away from view. Luck went up the stairs (he was really unable of going down by there), so he walked back up wit his mascot feet and tried to push the escalator button. His mascot hands were too big. He swore once more. As the walrus in beaver costume waited for the escalator to open, Alexis kept hidden from his view and went down the stairs. Luck entered the escalator.

Finally, the escalator doors opened on… Alexis and Shadow punching Luck right in the beaver face. On the surprise, Luck got stunned, so the cops took the opportunity and grabbed him. They removed the mascot head and punched him once more to make sure the walrus was knocked out.

Alexis and Shadow packed the walrus in the same car trunk as Sonic, who seriously felt like it was getting hot in here. But as they were doing that, Alexis got a call. He immediately answered.

"_**I told you to stay away… You want a final word with your daughter?**_" The killer had the finger near a button, which was probably used to rig a bomb.

"_Waitawaitawait…_" Alexis began. "_We got Sonic, if you want it, we can bring him to you. I don't give a shit about him; all I want is my Jen._"

Shadow looked at him with an expression that could mean a lot of things… Alexis lip-synch told him that it was a plan.

"**You`re pushing your luck, Coolette.**"

"_Okay. What`s the deal?_"

Shadow was closely listening to anything Alexis was saying.

"_**The old docks… the conveyer tower at the end of it… bring Sonic here and nothing will happen to your treasure.**_** You have fifteen minutes.**" And the killer hung up.

Alexis closed his cell phone and put it on his pants pockets, then looked at Shadow.

"You know we can lose our jobs over this."

"Je m`en câlisse," Shadow replied before closing the trunk door, leaving the beaver tail out.

"It`s hot in here!" Sonic yelled in the trunk, though nobody could hear him.

OLD DOCKS – CONVEYER TOWER

MAY 28th, 3250

12:10 AM

Shadow parked the car near the tower. They came out, opened the trunk and took out Luck and Sonic. Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched by the tattoo killer.

The tower had a scary look, it was abandoned since many years, and it looked as fragile as a castle of cards. Behind them, a honk was heard, so they turned around. The tattoo killer was watching them from the tower, but had used some sort of device to distract them. Alexis` cell phone rang again, so he answered.

"_Yes?_"

"**Bring him inside the tower.**"

They handcuffed Sonic and Luck, and prepared for the showdown – if there was going to have one of course.

Alexis entered the tower with Luck in front of him, handcuffed as well. "Mon osti, you`re not done with me yet." There was hockey nets around, hulo items scattered in the room, and real-life size figures of well-known players. The killer, sitting over one of the nets, heard Luck swearing.

"Hey, Luck, welcome home. You were born to be a mascot."

"_Are you done fucking walking over my snowshoes, cop of my ass?_" Luck asked. The mascot feet were shaped like snowshoes, which explains why he couldn`t easily go down the stairs in the hulo center.

"What did you do of MY player?" the killer asked, talking about Sonic. Alexis almost walked in the lighted space, which strangely looked like the demarcations of a hulo playing field. "Stop there." The killer paused. "_Where is Sonic?_"

"_There`s a change in the program. You hand me my daughter, and you and your walrus can go._"

The killer sighed. Alexis recognized him… it was that guy, from the case five years ago! Those 3D glasses couldn`t lie.

_Flashback_

"_Jean, stop it!"_

"_Why would I?" The wolf asked. "That guy nearly ruined our lives! All he deserves is death!"_

_The killer stood silent, looking at the coyote and the wolf behind his red and blue 3D glasses. It was a human, between twenty and thirty years old, maybe only eighteen. He was looking at the scene with an evil grin._

"You can`t kill me._" The killer muttered those words in a monotonous voice._

"_And why couldn`t we?" Jean asked._

"_Because I have a hostage." The killer revealed his silhouette; he was a tall human, with long anime-styled hair that stood in place, probably thanks to gel. He was wearing a pair of 3D glasses, not in carton, but real glasses with the right side blue and the left side red. It must have been expensive, real glasses with colored glass. He was wearing a shirt with the symbol of the Lakers and denim pants. The hostage, handcuffed in the back and scared like never before, was staying silent; one word would be the death of him._

_Alexis took out his revolver. "Release the hostage and nothing will happen."_

"_Yeah, right," the killer replied, releasing the hostage, but pulling out a tiny remote control. "See this bomb? It might explode any time, killing everyone here."_

_He set the bomb on the floor; it was a flat bomb, small and easy to put in a pocket. He rigged it and ran away._

"_Alexis, take care of the bomb!" Jean yelled. "I`m going after him."_

"_No, Jean! He`s gonna press the button if you go catch him!"_

"_I don`t give a shit anymore, man! I just want this junk to die!" And he ran away._

_Alexis grabbed the bomb from the floor. He ran out of the building, and saw Jean and the killer in a fistfight. Who was going to win? No one. They were tired on each side. Alexis brought the bomb to them._

"Idiot!_" the killer yelled._

_But Jean and the killer were still fighting. There was blood on their faces, and they were seriously injured. Alexis saw the remote control near him, so he picked it up. The killer was down on the floor, and Jean thought he was done with him, so he walked to Alexis._

"_I think he got enough."_

_But the guy got up, ran to Jean and got into another fight. I the brawl, Jean grabbed the bomb from Alexis` hands, and in a swift motion as he was avoiding a punch, hid the flat bomb in the guy`s back pockets._

_As the 3D glasses guy saw he was unable to counter-attack, he ran away. He ran toward the place where the hostage was captive, and Jean jumped on the remote control Alexis held in his hands._

"_Give me that!"_

"_No way! It will blow us up; I have the bomb with me!"_

"_No. It`s somewhere else."_

_Alexis looked at the killer, running away. There was a rectangular object in his back pocket._

"_You`re not gonna do that."_

"_Wanna bet?" Jean asked, and he pushed the button. A loud BOOM was heard, and in the distance, the murderer`s torso was blown away. As for the legs they were now a thousand pieces puzzle._

"_Jean, you`ll get fired for that."_

"_Je m`en câlisse.__" The wolf looked at what he had done with an obvious smile._

_Alexis knew there was someone else around. That golden hair couldn`t lie; Antoine had seen the whole thing. The French coyote approached the cops. Antoine was already 28 by now, and he was at a higher rank than before._

"You know dat thiz fing mite cost mi my rank!_" Antoine said without any hello or how are you. Antoine picked a cell phone from his attire, and dialed the number of the Four-Lakes Police Department._

"Yess, Capitain Oxen, pleeze. … Oh, Oxen? I have sum niouze aboot your detectives Alexis Depardieu Coolette and Jean Leloup._"_

"_Don`t do that!" Alexis said. "What can I do to keep my job? I have a seven years old daughter at home and a wife waiting for me and my revenue!"_

_Antoine kept thinking. "Which one of you pushed the button?"_

"_That`s him!" The two cops said in unison, pointing to the other like children._

"_Shut up, it`s you!" Jean said, punching Alexis. The coyote fell on the floor, his nose slightly bleeding._

"_Antoine, it`s him! You know my level of honor is too high to do that kind of thing! I wouldn`t punch my friend. I would never… blow up a guy! No matter what had happened with that guy!" Alexis argued._

_Antoine stood silent for a few seconds. "_You are not rong on dat, Alexis. I know you enouf._" Then, turning to the wolf: "You, man, are now in unemployment."_

_Hours later, at the police department, Jean was packing his stuff and leaving. Antoine grabbed Alexis, who was going back home, and looked at him in the eyes._

"Lissen, couzin. I taut on that for zee last hour, and I`m no chure aboot who really did it._"_

"You`re kidding me, right, cousin?_" Alexis asked._

"If I wuz kidding, I would be laffing_," Antoine said. "I_`m no goud liyar."

"Anyway, why are we speaking English?_ In French you would not sound retarded, cous`."_

"_Okay, okay. But you know that the next mistake you make will cost you your job."_

"_Okay, it`s registered." However, Antoine, please, I really need that job to survive; I was raised by a detective dad and an overprotective mother, you know it. All my life I read Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes. I`m only good at that and action."_

"_Ever thought of stunt guy?" Antoine suggested, grinning._

"_You`re not funny," his cousin replied._

"_Anyway, watch out. I`m going back to Robotropolis now, King Sonic and Queen Sally might need me soon."_

_And that`s one of the final times Alexis saw Antoine… and also what triggered the menace._

_End flashback_

The killer looked at Alexis behind his 3D glasses.

"You should be dead! Jean blew up your lower half!"

The killer showed up from the darkness… He was wearing a T-Shirt on which all the few years the Lakers won the Cup were written around a picture of the Kingsley Cup, the one all hulo teams dream to win. On the lower half, he was wearing… nothing. Not that he needed to; his lower half was completely robotic, he didn't even have any genitals, everything below his waist was of a metallic grey.

"_One look answers your question, am I right?_"

The killer pulled out of darkness… Jen, on a wheeled chair, tied up. Alexis held his gun up, while Jennifer was yelling through the duct tape for her father to come and save her.

"Hush…" the killer told Jen. "_You see? I never lied. You daughter is_ safe and sound." He ripped off the duct tape over Jen`s mouth and the girl began yelling.

"_Dad come to save me I`m scared please help me I don`t like this place!_"

"_Calm down, treasure, dad is here. It`s almost finished._"

The tattoo killer looked at Alexis trying to comfort Jen. "You two are sooo cute." But he put his gun on Jen`s temple. "You really think this is a fair trade?" The killer came out of the darkness totally, his face revealed to Alexis. He looked young. But Alexis knew he was at least thirty-five years old. "That`s not what we had agreed on, WHERE IS SONIC DAMNIT?" Alexis kept pointing his gun to Luck. "That loser is nothing worthy to me. Just an ancient player scum. Kill him, I don`t give a shit. _Or maybe you`d like me to do it?_" And the tattoo killer slot Luck. Alexis fell on the floor as Luck received the gunshots and fell as well.

The killer moved his gun back to Jen`s temple.

"_Dad I hate that dad come to save me dad I`m scared!_" Jen yelled.

"_Close your eyes, Jennifer._" But his daughter kept yelling. "_Close your eyes!_"Jen obeyed. "_Don't open them until I tell you to do so._"

"Throw me your gun," the killer said, still menacing Jen with his own revolver. "Now." Alexis couldn`t do anything else but to obey, or else his daughter would have a new hole in the head. He threw his gun toward the killer.

Alexis rose from the floor and stood up. "Crisse, _you`re crazy._" He was talking about the tattoo killer killing Luck.

"Come on, Alex. He was just a fucking loser I found while surfing the Net. He wanted revenge on who screwed up the sport he was so proud of. _I only gave him the tools to do so. Easy. Then, it was even easier to convince him to do the other murders on those who destroyed our _great sport_._"

"_It`s just a game, kiddo,_" Alexis tried to reason.

The killer menaced Jen again. "Gimme your car keys." Alexis moved the hand to his car keys and threw them to the tattoo killer, who caught them in the air. "It`s detective Emo who got my package? I hope he`s not too far…"

Alexis yelled. "Shadow! Bring him!"

"Coming!" Shadow yelled from afar. He was holding Sonic, handcuffed and gagged, and was bringing him to the scene. He whispered to his forever rival: "He won't kill you yet, he needs a crows and he needs to make you a tattoo first… and we won`t let him do, King."

To be continued…

* * *

Author`s notes: Only fifteen minutes left to the original movie! And to this I include the end credits. That means it ends very soon. Maybe it will end in two chapters! I really hope so. Also, I am working on two fics at the same time; I`ll soon post a oneshot in the Sonic category, something I felt like I needed to do it, an homage to a French Canadian singer who died almost ten years ago, which I saw the movie about, which I heard many songs from, which deserves to have his Sonic OC. Stay tuned for this.


	16. Chapter 15

I don`t own some characters, nor the original story this is based on. However, many plot details are mine. I tried using Alexis and Hood on forum RPs, and it`s just like I gave them a distinct personality from the roles they`re based on! Awesome, isn`t it?

* * *

Chapter 15

"It`s too long!" the killer said, pointing his gun to Jen`s right temple.

"_Don`t touch my daughter!_" Alexis yelled. The killer smirked and pressed a button on a device on Jen. Instantly, the screen showed a series of numbers which were going in reverse order. A bomb. And it was 05:00, 04:59, 04:58, 04:57…

"_In five minutes… the whole place blows up!_"

Alexis couldn't do a thing; he had no idea how to stop a bomb. "Shadow, hurry!"

"We`re almost there!" Shadow yelled from afar, though closer than the other time. They entered the room, just as the bomb was down at 03:43. Shadow had his jacket buttoned for one of the rare times.

"Tick tack tick tack…" the killer jokingly said. Just then Shadow arrived with Sonic on the place.

"_Give him,_" Alexis said. Sonic looked scared, not knowing what to do. "_We have no choice, there`s a bomb on Jen._"

Just then Shadow saw something Alexis didn't see; there was an emerald attached to the bomb. A Chaos Emerald. The normal bomb could sure blow up the room, but equipped with a Chaos Emerald, it could blow up the whole tower and a part of the docks and bring all that down below the surface. Shadow pointed his gun to Sonic. "Walk over there." Sonic did nothing. "Walk over there!" Sonic walked, unable to say a thing because of the gag. And he went to the other side, to the killer. The killer got ready to shoot Jen if the cops were to try anything bad, and Shadow was ready to (not) shoot Sonic if he stopped walking. The tension had risen to the maximum. Sonic turned around. "Move!" Shadow said again.

As Sonic reached the tattoo killer, he got caught by him and was now menaced on his own temple by the killer`s revolver. "_Okay, now you give me my daughter,_" Alexis said.

"Not till detective Shadow throws his gun away as well." Shadow dropped his gun slowly and kicked it toward the killer. On Jen, the bomb showed 04:26, 04:25…

Alexis walked one step to his daughter. "_Not yet, Alex. Not yet!_" The killer reminded him."_Don`t push your luck even more._"

Shadow felt like he was being watched; of course there was the tattoo killer going away with his new victim, none other than King Sonic the hedgehog, but there was someone else. Shadow ran to his gun, but the tattoo killer escaped a "Fuck!" and shot the hedgehog. Shadow fell on the floor, apparently lifeless.

"Shadow!" Alexis yelled. He used that time to grab his gun and exchanged gunshots with the murderer. Jen was totally scared now. But Alexis spun around and saw Shadow on the ground. "Shit… Shadow!" He ran to his Station Square friend, and then remembered the bomb on his daughter. "Okay Jen, you can open the eyes now, you can look."

Jen noticed the bomb. "_Remove me that, dad, remove that bomb._" It showed 03:30… 03:29…"_I`m scared._" But Alexis never had a formation in bomb unrigging. He was afraid that if he touched anything the bomb was to explode, bringing them down underwater with the Chaos Emerald.

Outside the tower, the killer was pushing Sonic out. Sonic was running at a slow speed (for him it was like walking) but the killer constantly had him near. The handcuffs Sonic had on were behind his back; impossible to go Spin Dash or defend.

"_Remove it, dad, do something!_" Jen yelled.

"_Jen, you have to calm down, I can`t concentrate, and I need to concentrate to remove it._"

Jen panicked, so Alexis put his hands on each side of her head and whispered: "_We`ll do that together. Calm down, I will remove it. But I can`t if you panic._"

"_Okay,_" Jen whispered too. The bomb now showed 02:58… 02:57…

"Don't touch it," someone said behind them. Shadow got on his feet. He was still alive! Alexis turned to him. Shadow removed completely his jacket, showing why he had it buttoned (he had never buttoned it for the whole case till now): He had an anti-gunshot metallic shirt under. So that`s why he wanted to enter next… Good job… however, it was still useless. "The bomb might be tricked or booby trapped."

"_Are you okay?_" Alexis asked as Shadow came near him.

"_I`ll survive. But…_" The hedgehog took a quick look at the bomb. "Damn, that bomb is too complicated."

"_What?_" Alexis asked.

"_When I entered as a detective, I got some lessons on bomb unrigging. But it was basic stuff. That one`s too complicated for me._"

Jen shed tears. She was panicking in her mind.

"_I`m sorry, I can do noth…_"

"Here I come!" a feminine voice said behind them. The cops both turned around and saw the white-haired bat, Rouge, behind them.

"Rouge!" Shadow yelled. "Why are you here?"

"Remember the message I sent you? The stolen Chaos Emerald? I tracked its energy here and waited as I saw it used as a bomb power-up."

02:16… 02:15…

"_What`s going on, dad?_" Jen asked.

"_I don`t know… but the woman there is going to help us._"

"The name is Rouge, girl."

"She does not understand English, honey," Shadow explained.

"Uh? _No problem, as a GUN agent I speak many languages. My name is Rouge_"

"_Help me, get it off me!_" Jen yelled.

Rouge approached the bomb and saw the Chaos Emerald. "_If I was still young and jewel addicted, I would have stolen it before that guy. __But luckily thanks to GUN`s help, I know how to unrig myself any dangerous bomb, might they be powered up with an emerald or not._"

"_Hurry then, I`m scared! I hate that thing!_" Jen yelled.

"_Hush girl, calm down. All will be okay._" Rouge got on her knees and looked at the bomb. "_Okay, we need two hands for that. We have to pull two wires at the same time._" Rouge was really good. Was that something she learned?

"_Go ahead, Alex. It`s your daughter, she won`t be scared as much with you,_" Shadow said.

Alexis took a deep breath. "_Okay…_" He moved the hands to the bomb. His breath was unequal; he was scared to blow them all up.

Rouge pointed to two wires, an orange and a red one. "_Look, pull that one and that one. You must do that at the exact same time._"

Alexis took another deep breath.

"_When I say "go", you pull them both. One, two…_"

"_Wait-wait!_" Alexis said. He took a final breath. "_Okay. Count again._"

"One… two… three… go!" Rouge yelled.

Alexis pulled the wires, and everything stopped. The bomb`s numbers stopped going down. With that anvil lifted from his shoulders, Alexis hugged Jen. Rouge removed the emerald from the bomb and kept it with her.

"_I`m so happy, all`s well that ends well…_" Rouge said. "Come here, Shady, you missed me for that time in a mission." And she pulled the black and red hedgehog into a kiss. Shadow, surprised at first, let go and kissed back. Just then he remembered what else was going to happen and he broke the kiss.

"_Sorry, honey, but I have something else to do before we kiss more._"

"_What?_" The bat asked.

"_I`ll tell you, and Jennifer here too, but someone needs to go and chase the guy. Alexis…_"

"_What? You want me to go after him and save Sonic?_" Alexis thought about it for a second. Rouge was puzzled now, but to break the silence, Jennifer spoke.

"_Go to that guy, and kick the crap out of him. Make him pay. Give him a hell of a whack._"

"_Anything for you, Jen,_" the cop said after kissing his daughter`s forehead.

"_I`ll go after you, Alex. Get him!_" Shadow encouraged.

As Alexis ran away to chase the tattoo killer, Shadow and Rouge unwrapped Jen`s arms from the chair, and she hugged Shadow and Rouge. "Thanks." That was one of the few words she could say in English. You do not need to know a language to communicate in it; sometimes very few words can be enough.

OLD DOCKS – OUTSIDE THE CONVEYER TOWER

MAY 28th, 3250

12:25

The tattoo killer was packing up Sonic again in Alexis` car trunk. That`s why the tattoo killer had taken Alexis` keys. He was planning to use the car and drive Sonic to wherever he was going to tattoo and kill him.

"Not again!" Sonic thought.

The killer took the driver`s seat and turned the key. He began driving away. But Alexis arrived from the side, on a small metallic structure, and shot the car with his gun. The killer said a few "Fuck!"

But Alexis ran out of bullets, so he had to think fast and stop the car himself. He ran on the structure, which was a platform over the ground, climbed and jumped from the structure, right over the car. He landed on the car`s roof.

"Take that!" The killer yelled, taking his gun and shooting to the ceiling, hoping to hit Alexis. The shot resonated outside and Alexis lost his grip and fell on the asphalt of the dock. The killer looked behind to see his success, but when he looked back in front, he saw he had lost the track and was speeding up toward a pile of junk. The car spun away as it went a few feet over the ground, and fell on the roof. The car was now upside-down with its wheels spinning aimlessly.

Alexis got on his feet; he was bleeding at many places on the face. However, as the cop approached the car, the killer broke the driver`s window from inside and passed by the window. He also was badly injured and had trails of blood over the face. He no more has his 3D glasses; now he could only see… in red and blue?

Alexis walked to the killer, at a slow pace. The killer was now behind his upside-down car and shooting the trunk to scare Sonic. And it was working of course.

"Aaaaaah!" Alexis yelled while ramming on the killer, who tried to shoot. But Alexis lowered his body and head-butted the killer, catching his arms and have him the back on the car`s trunk. However in a fast move, the killer gripped Alexis and spun the situation to his advantage, sending Alexis on metallic barrels a few meters away. But Alexis dragged him in the fall and punched him. They brawled near a pile of rusty barrels and the killer threw Alexis on them. Alexis fell right on an injury, which caused him a lot more pain. "_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawch_!"

Shadow and Jennifer were running out of the tower when they heard Alexis` yell. "_Dad?_"

Of course Alexis couldn`t understand her. The killer had him at waist level and was slamming his face into the barrels with his knee. Alexis yelled even more. Not only those knees were robotic, the barrels were metallic as well.

"_Dad?_" Jen asked to Shadow.

"_He`s gonna need help. Take that._" The hedgehog handed her his cell phone and turned it on. "_Go back to Rouge and call your mother. She`ll be happy to know you`re okay._" The black and red cop left to help Alexis.

The killer stepped back as Alexis was badly injured. The killer decided it was time to end it, so he grabbed his gun on the asphalt. "Dave, look at the state you`re in!" He said that sentence with an obvious smile.

"_It would have been better if you had taken care of your girl…_ and let me go with Sonic."

"_You`re talking too much,_" Alexis replied.

The killer aimed for Alexis but Shadow arrived and tackled the killer, grabbing his arm holding the revolver at the same time. Shadow pushed the killer to the car and smashed his arm on the trunk once, twice, three times. The killer yelled in pain and let his weapon go, so Shadow tried to stop him from moving.

But the killer now held Shadow close and touched the hedgehog`s injury made earlier by the gunshot; yeah, he had a bulletproof vest, but it almost went through. Shadow yelled as the killer touched this injury. Alexis saw the revolver on the floor and went to grab it.

Shadow got the killer on his back and used a judo move to throw the both of them on the floor, but now the killer was on top of him and preparing to punch, so Shadow kicked him on the legs, as he was unable to do anything else. The killer punched him on the jaw. However, Shadow took out of his pockets a miniature bomb and stuck it to the killer`s mechanical legs while they were fighting, hoping the killer would not notice it. The tattoo killer was now trying to strangle Shadow as Alexis finally reached the gun.

The killer punched Shadow again and got on his feet. But Shadow kicked him again, pushing him away. Alexis took all the forces he had left to try and aim at the killer. "No… don`t…" Shadow tried to say. But Alexis couldn`t shoot. The killer ran away at full speed. Shadow got back on his feet as Alexis was still trying to shoot the man. But Shadow lowered the revolver. "Don`t do it. It`s useless."

"_What, useless? He tried to kill us, he tried to kill Sonic, he tried to kill my daughter! He`ll be back!_" Alexis tried to reason.

"Oh, good things come to those who wait," Shadow said with a smirk despite his heavily bleeding face.

"_What are you talking about?_" Alexis asked. Then he understood. "_No, you didn`t do that… exactly like my past case… It will get us fired, you know?_"

"Je m`en câlisse," Shadow said, earning a smirk from Alexis as well.

The killer was in the distance, having problems running.

"_You can do a reset on that thing?_" Alexis asked about the bomb.

"I`d rather call it… recycling." Shadow looked at the killer. "Wow, he`s kinda fast…"

"Are you sure it`s gonna work?" Alexis asked.

"We`ll see…" Shadow replied, unsure himself.

The killer stopped as he heard the beeping of the bomb on him. The beeps were speeding up, which means the bomb was gonna explode soon! "You gotta be fucking kidding me, right?" He said.

BOOM!

No other word can explain what happened. Alexis and Shadow looked at the explosion, seeing pieces of anatomy being blown away.

"Wow…" Was all Alexis could say.

"Yeah…" Was all Shadow could add.

Just then they heard Sonic in the car trunk, yelling for freedom.

"_We free him first, or we go see Jen and Rouge first?_"

"No need!" Rouge`s voice was heard. She was holding Jen in her arms, and had her gun pointed to… Luck, still in the mascot disguise?

"One minute after you left, honey, that walrus began moving again. There was a bulletproof vest hidden in the costume`s fur. _As for you, the coyote, your daughter is safe._"

"_My dad`s name is Alexis, madam,_" Jennifer said.

Alexis and Shadow looked at Luck; they couldn`t see his injuries as they were below the face, but they could guess he was badly harmed.

"Well, all we got to do now is free Sonic, right?" Shadow asked.

* * *

Author`s notes: Phew, now it`s officially complete! Um, I mean… the movie ends on this. In the movie, Luck`s dead, and we have no idea what happens after the killer is blown up. But I swear I`ll add a brand new chapter, totally from myself in story and details, and it might revolve on the aftermath, with either Shadow`s family coming over to Alexis` house or the other way around, with special earphones that let them either understand French or English. Add maybe a renewed romance and a new one, who knows?


	17. Aftermath

Guys, the story is almost complete!

Oh yeah, right. I still don`t own Shadow, Rouge, Antoine, Sonic, Amy, Tails, and anyone else that might have been spotted and who already appeared in other media.

* * *

Aftermath

ALEXIS` HOUSE  
JUNE 4th, 3250  
6:21 PM

It`s been a week. One week since the case was closed. The killer was never found. Or it was just impossible to retrieve all the pieces. But they got the right-hand man, who was the one who did all the work. In other words, maybe they didn`t catch the mastermind, but they caught the lesser mind. Luck was found guilty of a good number of murders (even below two is one too many) and sent for a long time. In a Four-Lakes prison, of course. Nobody knows what happened with him.

Everything was going well for the two cops. As soon as Alexis brought Jen back to Annie, she French-kissed him for thanks, and since then they`re getting prepared for a remarriage. Jennifer is happy now, she`ll get her father`s room as he`s now spending his nights again with his ex-wife. Her bedroom will now be used as a guest room. Jen`s happy since Alexis` bedroom is bigger than hers, so she has more place for her things.

On their side, Shadow, Rouge and Matt grew closer thanks to this adventure. Shadow grew closer to his son, and thus the detective and the fox decided they`d go together once in a while for bowling, or for another father-son activity. Rouge bargained for more break days, which she almost got: she asked for at least ten vacation days per month, but she got seven. Just enough. Now Shadow sees her more often, for whole days, and he`s no more worried about her, as she usually comes back from mission without a scratch. Matt wanted to speak French like his father, so he decided to enter French classes next school year. For fun, Shadow tried to learn the "Desk Jammer" thing, but he`s not so good. And he`s always corrected to "Disk Jockey" by his son.

Thanks to the alliance between Alexis and Shadow, both sides seem to get along better now. Not saying it`s still perfect happiness and the Four-Lakers are no more called "drownies", but still. The SSPD and the FLPD now receive a lot more cash from G.U.N., as they proved they could work together.

Thanks to Shadow and Alexis, Hood went on a blind date and met a cute fox woman, a landscape painter making money off her art and which didn`t mind much about Hood`s jokes; she was transforming him to a gentleman.

Janet, Rouge`s sister, also found someone for her. Claw McKaz, the boss of the SSPD, is only three or four years older than her, and she`s something like 35. Even Rouge herself has no idea if it will go further than a one-night or a few days romance.

Even Antoine, who learned about the duo`s success in the mission, decided to erase the past from memory and kept for himself everything that he knew. All that counted was G.U.N`s cash coming in the budget every month.

***

Alexis invited Shadow`s family to come over for dinner. Thanks to an earphone designed to let one understand another language, Matt could come too. Jen and Annie got the same earphone only so they could understand Matt. Matt could understand them as the earphone translated what they said to English, while Annie and Jen used it only for Matt; the dinner would be mostly in French.

Shadow and Annie helped each other with the cooking. Shadow prepared a beefsteak with brown sauce and mashed potatoes. Annie prepared pork with three-pepper sauce and a salad with garden vegetables. Well, it was going to be a great dinner. Alexis and Rouge talked about anything, from their job to their relation, and Rouge told him the best argument one could say so Alexis remarries Annie for sure. Rouge knew of course about Alexis` visit to her sister, and, to tell the truth, she didn`t mind at all.

They sat around the dinner table. Alexis` family on a side and Shadow`s on the other. Alexis in front of Rouge, Annie in front of Shadow and Jen in front of Matt. They discussed. Alexis talked about a past case involving a guy in the mafia, and Shadow talked about a murderer who acted without leaving any trace… in the end only one thing could reveal the identity. As for Rouge and Annie, they were speaking French, and were talking family. So, how is your son at school? Oh, he is quite good. And your daughter? Well she`s not the best student but she`s in the top 10 of her class. The usual talk mother to mother. Jen and Matt, each between their respective parents, were listening to either conversation while eating. Their regard met a few times, but they turned it again, as if they were too shy to talk to each other.

Dessert came, and they ate it entirely; yeah, it was not the biggest cake ever, but it was so delicious that almost everyone took two pieces. After the cake was eaten, Rouge suggested she helps Annie for the dishes. Alexis and Shadow sat in the living room, and discussed about their job.

"So, Shad, how did it go after the mission?" Alexis asked.

"I`ve been very lucky. You know, after we brought Luck back, I really had to invent a few things…"

"What do you mean?"

"Well… the real enemy was the 3D glasses human, right?" Shadow asked his pal.

"Yeah… he gave Luck the tools for killing, for the tattoos, and for revenge," Alexis answered.

"Yes… but in the end, who killed the victims?"

"It was Luck. Of course."

"Yes, that`s it. The mastermind behind the story was not the killer; however he had planned everything and let his henchman do all the work," Shadow concluded.

"That means we got the right guy in the end?" Alexis wondered out loud.

"Seems like it," Shadow ended. Alexis turned on the television. The anchorman was talking about the case just at that time.

"Luck Terian, ancient hulo player and drug addict, will soon be tried for the murders of Mac Edward, Michael Goaler, Carta Dubien, Patina Glaceina, Laurent Halder, as well as attempted murder on King Sonic the Hedgehog. He will also be tried for drug grow-op, kidnapping, and bar brawl. The judge said that Luck might be judged for at least ten years and at most for life; his conditional release was denied."

"Good thing to hear," Shadow said. "Conditional release cuts to a fifth a prisoner`s time. That guy deserves far more than only two years."

"True," Alexis ended. The coyote turned off the television. "Look at the hour."

"Nine thirty? Time went fast, huh?" Shadow asked.

"Yeah, I wonder what Matt and Jen have been doing… I noticed they were quite shy to each other during lunch."

Shadow thought about it.

During that time, Jen and Matt were in the backyard, talking to each other, until the discussion took a weird turn; Jen said she liked her father`s job, and Matt said so too, she learned he was a disk-jokey, she liked it, and etc. They were out of view.

"Who knows? Maybe they`ll become friends!" Shadow said. "I`m gonna go get Matt; we`ll be home around 1 o`clock, so…" He went to the backyard. "Alexis!" He said. "Come here."

Alexis arrived, and Annie and Rouge, intrigued, also went to look. Matt and Jen were kissing in the backyard. Just a cute kiss, not with the tongue.

"Is that right? She`s 13 and he`s 15…" Annie asked.

"I read somewhere that it didn`t matter too much as long as there is only two years of age difference at most," Rouge explained.

"If you say so, honey…" Shadow replied.

"I`m happy for our daughter, Alexis. Not only she`s gonna have someone good with her, but she is also linking both cities, once more."

"That`s pretty cool. Does that mean Shadow`s gonna be my daughter`s stepfather?"

"Yep," Shadow simply said.

"Well, I`m happy that it`s you and nobody else," Alexis said.

As Shadow`s family left, that night, Jen was looking at them going to the black hedgehog`s car, and waved goodbye at her English boyfriend, motioning a "call me" hand sign. Matt lifted a thumb up and blew a kiss toward her.

* * *

???  
??? Xth, 3250  
???

"After the recent events that occured to my person, I have thought about the transaction. I have come to the result that Robotropolis didn`t need a hulo team. Besides, hulo is still widely popular in Station Square, Four-Lakes and White Mountain. As such, I think the teams there should stay there."

"King Sonic, what changed your mind?"

"A fan who was willing to do anything possible to stop the moving of teams. And maybe also detectives Alexis Depardieu Coolette and Shadow, who helped me out of a... small problem. The teams will not be moved."

* * *

Author`s notes: Well that`s what officially ends Mobian Cop Bad Cop, with almost fifteen hundred words of footage not from the movie. Good thing, huh? When I think again about it, I realize it`s my longest fanfiction yet!

However if you closely follow my fanfictions, you might soon see new things.

1) Have you read Belzebuth yet? If you`re a Blaze fan, then it`s to read. The story focus on my OC, Dédé, also known by his stage name Belzebuth, the singer of the group The Roommates, and a romantic trying to get the only one he`ll never have – Blaze herself, that is. It`s a rather long fanfiction, I recommend having two hours free when reading it. Watch the video or search the song also, it`s ten minutes not lost listening to silly things. I might make a shorter sequel with another song from the group it is based on.

2) I have been advertising my original series on my profile page, and I know it will never really be published in the United States. To make up for that, I will probably post chapters of five thousand words and rewrite, but a lot shorter, the whole ten books of the saga. It should do about thirty-four chapters and become my longest fic ever indeed. If you`re interested it might pop up soon on my profile.

3) No surprise on that, but I`m more the Mario type of guy. For my first try at a Sonic fanfiction, I liked it. I`ll try again soon. However I also have a fanfiction in the head, and it`s begging me to write it ASAP. I might intertwine the "saga" mentioned at point 2 and this. You always know where to get them: profile.

Thanks to my readers! Thanks also for all my friends on the forums here who helped me write it, might it be just a little bit. Read ya soon guys!


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